In Phuket
by yas-m
Summary: Jack is running away from a failed marriage and an unhealthy relationship with his father. Kate is on the run, for a crime she may or may not have committed. They cross paths in Phuket. Focuses on Jack and Kate, but involves most of the Losties.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Passing Phuket**

**Characters: Jack/Kate**

**Summary: Jack and Kate cross paths in Phuket two years before the crash.**

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The bruises on his face are turning a black blue and he winces in pain when he presses an index finger against his cheek. The bartender is a kid of barely fifteen who does not speak a word of English, but somehow he understands perfectly when Jack mumbles, "make it a strong one."

He had thought he'd seen the worst that Phuket had to offer, but after being beaten up and banished by Achara's brother and his gang, he found out there was a whole different, seedier, part he had not seen yet. He knew the smartest and safest decision would be getting on a plane and heading home. But the thought of going back to Los Angeles, back to his old life was more revolting that staying in Phuket, risking his life just a little longer.

He spends his time in bars that even the low lives that are after him do not dare go to. He plays poker during the day and spends his winning getting wasted at night. And this evening was no different.

His eyes wander around the room and everything seems to fit. A couple of elderly men, already drunk, argue over some card game. A shady deal is being sealed in one of the darker corners of the room. The resident pimp takes the best seat in the bar while his girls roam around looking for the first customer of the evening. Members of the local gang are already seated in their designated corner, each slime ball eying a different girl. Everything fits, including him, with his beat up face and fresh tattoos. Everything fits in this dark, dirty bar except for one thing. Everything fits except for her.

She sits two seats down the bar from him. She is obviously not a local and when she orders her drink, her American accent is hard to avoid. She wears a gray hoodie and a pair of worn out jeans. She has obviously been traveling a lot. Her unruly brown curls frame her sun kissed cheeks and she aimlessly fiddles with a lighter.

He clears his throat and coughs out an "excuse me". She half expects the American she spotted earlier to use some sleazy "whats-a-girl-like-you-doing-in-a-place-like-this" line on her, but instead he just motions towards the lighter in her hand with a cigarette held loosely between his fingers.

"This stuff will kill you," she says as she slides him the lighter across the bar.

He chuckles, and she does not expect it. The warmth of it as it reaches her shocking her slightly. "What about you?" he asks.

"I don't smoke," she says plainly, taking the lighter back from him. She expects that their conversation has ended there and goes back to staring at her drink.

Jack on the other hand, is just not ready yet to end it there, something about this girl pulling at him. "So you just like playing with fire?" he asks, waiting to gauge her reaction.

She cannot hide the smirk that crosses her lips, cocking her head slightly to look at him from the corner of her eye, "yeah, something like that."

His eyes look past her along the bar, in search of an ashtray, trying to maintain some semblance of civility in this hellhole. She slides the two closest to her and smiles, "any color preference?"

He chuckles - _no, he fucking giggles, she thinks to herself_ – "standard black."

Every neuron in her brain is ringing an alarm urging her to get up and leave, but something else, something stronger, is making her stay, pushing her to this man, and before she knows it, she has moved from her stool to the one closer to him.

"Get in trouble with the locals?" she asks, studying his face, realizing for the first time the gentle features below the bruises – _he looks like a clean cut all American boy, and that giggle, she still cannot get over that fucking giggle._

"Something like that," he answers, turning to face her. "You don't look like a trouble maker," she says, locking her look with his.

"Yeah? What do I look like?" he asks, getting pulled into the intensity of the look they are sharing.

"Like someone stuck fighting another man's battle," she replies, pulling closer, daring him to ask the question she knows has to be lingering at the tip of his tongue.

"Is that so?" he says, reading the challenge in her eyes, he adds, "what about you?"

She takes it, narrows her eyes and answers, with matching defiance," I run. I don't fight. If I find myself some place I should not be in, I run."

He nods slightly and watches as she breaks their eye contact, before he whispers, "you're not running now."

They sit in silence for a while, and after he orders his third drink, she turns back towards him, her fingers inches from his arm and she studies the fresh tattoo adorning his bicep. "That must have hurt," she says, her eyes travelling back up to his face.

He just shakes his head," nah, it was ok," he says with a shrug. She touches his bruised face tentatively, cautiously aware of the line she is crossing, "yeah, I can see. You're pretty hard-core," she says, trying to hide the tremble in her voice – _why the hell is she nervous just sitting next to him? _– with a teasing tone.

He shuts his eyes for a second; not trusting his own voice because somehow that almost invisible feather touch has made him weak and his throat has dried up.

He opens his eyes and hides the crack in his voice with another chuckle – _again, she thinks, as that giggle dances against her skin_ – "that's me. Hard-core."

She turns in her stool, rich brown curls brushing across her face and her laughter manages to silence all the other sounds in the bar. Any other night he would blame the alcohol for the fire running through his veins, or the evening breeze for the hairs standing on the back of his neck, but not tonight. Tonight, it is all her, the green eyed brunette he just happened to bump into in the middle of nowhere.

She glances at the watch on his wrist and pushes herself of her seat. He does not ask her to stay and she does not expect him to. What he does say, though, is the last thing she expects him to say.

"I don't know your name."

She panics for the shortest moment before pointing towards his empty glass, the fifth of the evening. "You won't even remember it in the morning," she says.

He nods and adds, embarrassedly, "humor me."

The twinkle in his eyes sends a shiver down her spine. And she smiles, an honest innocent smile, something she thought she was no longer capable of, and answers, simply, "Kate."

Not Annie. Not Maggie. Not Lucy. Right now, she thinks it is only right for her to be Kate. And whether this man – the stranger who made her stop running for one evening – whether he remembers her name or even remembers ever meeting her or not when he wakes up with a hang over the next morning, she wants to be just Kate to him. Kate, the person she has long forgotten how to be.

He repeats her name to himself, barely a whisper, watching her walk out of the bar into the dark alley.

The next morning, with her backpack slung over her shoulder, Kate finds her self back at the same bar. She stands at the door. A young boy sweeps the floor while the man who apparently had not left since she left him the night before sits at a beat up piano revealing another secret about himself. His shoulders are slumped, his back turned towards her, but she can tell his is focused as his fingers travel expertly over the black and white keys.

The lonely melody calls to her, urging her to stay, like a tune begging her to pull it out of its loneliness, a tune promising her redemption. But Kate is not ready. She is not ready to hear how this tune will end.

At least, she is not ready just yet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright, you guys and your reviews are just too awesome! This was supposed to be a one-shot actually, I just forgot to click on "complete" LOL! But since I love you and I am a sucker for reviews, here is chapter 2. There is long author's note in the end that I would really appreciate your feedback on, so please check it out and let me in the comments or PM me or something. Thanks!**

Passing Phuket

Chapter 2

The rain pours violently, hitting the pavement mercilessly and immediately turning to mud as it mixes with the dirt on the ground. Kate sits on the bench at the side of the road, watching the buses file in and out of the station, and stares at the wet bus ticket in her hand. Her bus had left almost four hours ago but for some reason she is still sitting on that bench, drenched from head to toe, her backpack soaked on the bench next to her.

She watches the people bustling around her, trying to get out of the downpour, to find some shelter and wait it out. But Kate just sits there, aimlessly tracing with the toe of her shoe in the puddle of mud under her feet. She stares up at the sky and sees another black cloud approaching from the horizon.

Her instincts finally kick in and take back control of her actions. Her instincts and her heart never get along, her instincts usually winning in the end, sending her packing and running, but for some reason, they could not get her on the bus this morning. Instead, she had sat on that bench and let the sweet melody she heard that morning echo in her head over and over again, wishing she had stuck around to hear it play out to the end.

She finally comes to her senses, realizing that sitting in the middle of a bus station, with tourists traveling walking in and out every minute is not the wisest choice for a woman whose face is plastered in every police station in at least two continents. She grabs her backpack and walks back towards the only place she knows in Phuket, besides the bus station.

She is not sure what she is expecting when she walks into the bar, but an overwhelming sense of disappointment overtakes her when she looks around and does not find him there. She drops her bag on one of the stools and pulls her self up on the one next to it, ordering a beer from the kid behind the bar.

"I thought you'd be half way over the ocean by now, Kate," she hears a voice behind her say, and she tries her best to hide the shameless smile that spreads across her face.

She turns around and looks up at him, sober and the bruises on his face starting to heal nicely. She is glad to see that the smile on his face matches hers, "So you do remember me," she says back, a little more flirtatiously than she had intended.

He ducks his head and smiles, "I wasn't that drunk, Kate."

She bites her lip slightly and motions for him to join her, "I realized that you didn't return the courtesy last night," she says, and he looks at her quizzically, "you know my name. I don't know yours," she explains.

He smiles, a wide, genuine smile, "Jack."

"Kate," she says, extending her arm for him, and fighting back a giggle. He takes her hand in his and shakes it gently, and does not let go, as he looks over her shoulder to the backpack next to her.

"It's a good thing you didn't leave today," he says, not letting go of her hand, holding it in his between them, dangerously close to his lap, "there is a hell of a storm coming in tonight, and by the looks of it, you already got a little of it clinging on to you. You're soaking wet, Kate."

She drops her head, staring at their hands for a moment, before pulling her hand away, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're worried about me, Jack," she says, her tone coming out a little harsher than she had intended. He turns slightly in his seat, to face forward, and he mumbles as he brings his drink up to his lips, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a problem staying in one place for too long, Kate."

The look in her eyes says it, he stepped over the line with his line and he knows it. He drops his head, shuts his eyes, and curses under his breath, "shit."

She is quick to grab her bag and get on her feet, flight instincts in gear to run to the door. He feels her getting off her stool next to him, and reaches for her, grabbing her wrist and stopping her in her tracks.

She tries to pull her arm away, and is surprised that his hold on her is not harsh or forceful, it is gentle, and she manages to pull her arm away, but before she can walk away, she hears him say, "I'm sorry, Kate, please, stay."

She clenches her jaw and turns towards him, "You don't know me. You don't know anything about me," she spits at him, the rage burning through her eyes.

He nods and reaches for hand again, taking it tenderly in his, "I know, Kate, I'm sorry. That was absolutely uncalled for," he says. The gentle rubbing of his thumb against her skin is probably enough to break her, but she looks at him and cannot deny the sincerity in his eyes and voice, "please don't go," he says, and it comes out as a question more than a request.

She nods, managing a small smile, and squeezes his hand slightly. She moves to make it back onto her seat, but he surprises by getting off his, trapping them both between the tight space separating the two stools, "actually," he says, his lips just a few centimeters away from her forehead, his warm breath tickling against her cool skin, "how about we get out here?"

She looks up at him, trying to control the flush creeping into her cheeks, brought on by the proximity of his body, pressed flush against hers and making no attempt to move. She does not trust her voice, so she just looks at him questioningly. He smiles and looks around the bar, "look at his place, Kate. It's a dump. I was thinking maybe we can get dinner somewhere less sleazy, with real solid food," he says with a soft chuckle.

"Are you asking me out, Jack?" she asks, glad to see the playful banter is back.

"I just acted like a world class jerk. I am just trying to make it up to you, Kate," he answers honestly, hoping that he is not scaring her off again.

He finally lets go of a breath he had no idea he was holding when she nods her approval and moves back, making way for him to lead the way.

**Author's Note:**

**Ok, so that was chapter 2… What did you think? Worth going on with this?**

**Here's what I need your help with. First I have never completed a long multi chapter fic, so if I am to do this, I need your help, ok? This means comments and reviews, even if it is negative, even if you hate. Alright? Second, I have two options with this. Either a short fic, a few chapters long, of them meeting in Thailand and then going their separate ways, and then meet later on the island, and everything remains canon, like on the show. OR a longer fic that becomes totally AU with events happening that will not be canon and the island no longer exists (so far…). But you know what I mean, either they meet and then go to live their lives that lead to the island, or something totally new.**

**So please please please let me know what you prefer and I promise I will try to make it worth your while no matter which way the fic goes. Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

**WOW! Thank you so much for all the reviews and all the encouragement! You guys rock! And so, you get chapter 3, and the date! It looks like we're going with a longer AU fic, huh? I hope I can pull that off. I have to warn you though, I fully intend on bringing Sawyer into this. But like on the show, any Skate will be mostly a figment of Jack's imagination. LOL! But he is definitely showing up in chapter 5 or 6, so you have been warned. Also, so far, I know Claire and Christian will be in this, maybe even Juliet. If you want any specific Lostie to make an appearance, don't hesitate on letting me. Ok? Let's get on with it then.**

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**Chapter 3**

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Kate said, short of breath, as she pushed through the heavy foliage.

"Yes, I do," Jack huffed in a short breathed laugh.

"Because I have a feeling we're going in circles here," Kate said, studying the area around them. They left the bar over a half hour ago and she had suddenly found herself trekking through a heavy jungle like area.

"Trust me, we are not going in circles," Jack said, "and how would you know anyway, are you a jungle expert?"

Lucky for them, the rain had eased off a bit, allowing them to walk on relatively dry land instead of mud and puddles. "As a matter of fact, I am," Kate answered with a slight smirk. "My dad was in the army. Ranger Battalion. We were stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington State. We'd go hiking together. One day we spend 8 hours tracking deer. Being in the woods, it was like - it was like his religion. So yeah, I ma kind of an expert." Kate said, pausing in her walk as she allowed herself to reveal a little more to him, this stranger she couldn't seem to keep her walls up around.

Jack looked back at her with a silent smile, understanding that what she gave him right then was more than he was ready to reveal about himself, but still, appreciative that she trusted him enough to share it with him.

They walked in silence for a few minutes before reaching a small, elevated clearing. "We're here," Jack said, looking beyond the clearing.

A few steps behind him, Kate began the small uphill climb, trying to peer beyond the edge to see exactly where "here" is.

She lost her footing slightly on one of the rocks, she almost panicked, the ground wet and slippery, but quickly, she felt him grab her hand, a strong, firm hold pulling her up on her feet, and not letting go until she was standing next to him, looking towards their destination. He did not let go of her hand, and she made no attempt at pulling it away. It felt perfect for that moment. They stood hand in hand at the top of a green hill overlooking a golden, pristine beach, whose only inhabitant was a quaint little house.

"What is this place?" Kate finally asked, snapping out of the little reverie.

"This is the best restaurant in all of Thailand," Jack answered, looking at her, enjoying the wide-eyed look she had on her face. Maybe he did have a chance of making it up to her, he thought.

"This is a restaurant?" Kate asked, still not fully comprehending how Jack even found this hidden little place in the first place.

"Well, it has a kitchen…" Jack said, laughing, "I am staying in a room upstairs," Jack explained, "the family who live here are letting me rent their extra room, and it just happens that Sunan, the head of the household, makes the best Gai Med Ma Moung you have tasted."

"Well, I cannot say I have ever tasted… that to be able to tell the difference," Kate laughed.

"Come on," Jack said, excitedly, and tugged at her hand to follow him.

Two children were playing at the door, and they sprang to their feet when they saw Jack walking towards the house. "Doctah Jack, Doctah Jack," they cried in unison, the excitement in their voice evident.

Kate looked at Jack with a raised eyebrow, "doctor?" she asked, slightly excited about finding out that new peace of information about him (well, it fits more with his good boy look than anything else, she thought to herself).

Jack rubbed the back of his head and lowered his head, she swore there was a small blush creeping towards his cheeks as he managed a quiet, "yeah… doctor."

Jack let go of Kate's hand right before they walked through the door behind the excited children. Kate bit her lip and tried to hide the disappointment at the loss of his touch as she walked in behind him.

They walked into a simply furnished little restaurant, a few tables, not more than six or seven small one, and a few pictures hanging on the walls. It was really a hidden, quiet family place. Kate was not even sure if more than a dozen people knew about this "restaurant" but she found the privacy and the intimacy all the more appealing.

They were welcomed by a young couple, a Thai man, who she assumed was Sunan, and a woman obviously not of Thai origins. "Jack!" Sunan exclaimed, "you're here early. We weren't expecting you till… well, you know," he said, before cutting his welcome short seeing Kate walk in after the doctor.

Jack just smiled at his hosts, before introducing them to his new friend, with a casual hand sneaking to rest at the small of her back, "Sunan, Cindy, this is Kate," he said, with a smile stretching across his face, "we met in town, and I promised her the best Gai Med Ma Moung dinner she could find," he finished, and watched as the three shook hands with a warm welcome.

"Of course, of course," Sunan exclaimed, "have a seat, pick any seat you want," he said, moving in closer to Jack to whisper, "that one in the corner there, has the best record for romantic evenings," he winked not so subtly and made his way towards the kitchen, and his towards his wife and her scolding look. Jack laughed at his friend's comments and just led Kate towards the closest table.

The two children were still standing at the doorway, eyeing the new guest suspiciously. "Doctah Jack?" the elder of the two, a young boy of about eight, said, cautiously approaching the table, "who is this?" he asked, his sister, of about four, walking closely behind him.

"This is Kate," Jack said, turning towards the children, "she is my friend."

"She's pretty," the girl said, smiling at the stranger.

"Yes, she is," Jack said, turning back towards Kate, "she very pretty," he added, his voice barely over a whisper, his tone gentle, enjoying the way Kate ducked her head, nervously tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear, trying to hide her pink cheeks.

Cindy walked out of the kitchen after a few moments, carrying a tray of dishes and placed them at the table, "enjoy," she said, smiling at the two guests.

"Come on you two," Cindy said, looking at her children, "time to get ready for bed," she exclaimed, and Kate picked up her Australian accent.

"But mummy!" the two children nagged in unison, earning a disapproving glance from their mother.

"Come on kids, say good night, and let's head upstairs," she said calmly, leading her kids, who mumbled the good night to their residence on the second floor of the house.

Sunan walked back out of the kitchen after a few minutes, and also bid good night to their guests, "Jack, just leave everything as it is, take all the time you need in here, and don't worry about putting anything away, alright?"

Jack nodded his appreciation, and he and Kate thanked their host and bid him good night.

They sat enjoying their dinner for a while, making small talk about the places they'd seen in Phuket, about the food they were enjoying and other safe topics, both hesitant about digging any deeper, afraid of what secrets they might accidentally reveal about themselves.

Finally, Kate thought it was time to dive into it, "so, _doctor_, what brings you to Phuket?" she asked, and Jack did not miss her delivery of the title, obviously not amused that she found that out from a couple of children when she had already told him much more about herself.

"A year of a marriage from hell, followed by a year in the courts fighting for a divorce from hell. It sort of makes you want to get away for a while," he said, taking a sip from his beer.

"How long is while?" Kate asked, watching him closely.

"Five months," Jack said, "one month learning how to fly a kite and what dishes not to eat," he continued with a chuckle, "two weeks hanging around with a mysterious local girl, one night to get the tattoos, a half an hour to get the shit beat out of me by her brother and six other thugs," he said, his voice turning more somber, "three hours lying unconscious on the beach until those two kids you just met found me and called their parents. I woke up two days later in this house," Jack said, pausing a moment to take another sip, and look at Kate, whose eyes were looking at him with a warmth he had not seen in a long time, was it sympathy? Caring? Jack shook his head and finished, "it took me five minutes to realize this was still better than going back home."

Listening to him tell his story, trust her with his story, Kate knew he was letting her into a place he does not usually let people. She thought of her own story, her own journey that has led her there, and she held her breath, expecting him to ask her what she was doing there, but he didn't. He just gave her a sad smile, and space, the chance for her to tell him if she wanted to.

She just smiled back, reached for his hand and gave it a quick squeeze before pulling back, so quick that he wasn't sure it actually happened.

But it did happen, and he felt it because it left his hand cold, not because of the loss of contact, but because she was shivering. How had he not noticed that earlier, he thought to himself.

"Kate, how long did you spend under that rainstorm?" he asked, reaching towards her, placing a gentle hand against her forehead.

"I'm fine, Jack," she said, trying to pull back away from his touch, "it was just a few minutes, I barely had time to get wet from the rain."

"Are you sure?" Jack asked, not trusting her answer, but not wanting to press any further.

The truth was she was not feeling fine at all, she was cold and tired, but she was not ready to let him know about that, "yeah, I'm sure," she said with a smile, "I just need to use the restroom," she said, getting off her chair, watching Jack point to a door behind her.

She turned back to him to let him know she will be right back, but she had barely stood up when she felt everything go black and she knew she was going to pass out.

Jack was glad his mother taught him one thing as a child. You stand up when a lady leaves the table. He was pulling out of his chair when Kate's face turned pale and she dropped, right into his arms. He picked her in his arms, one arm supporting her back, the other under her knees.

"Kate? Kate?" he spoke against her forehead, "Kate, wake up please," he pleaded. He pulled her closer, trying to make her feel warmer, rubbing her arm slightly, and kept whispering against her hair as he walked the two flights of stairs up to his room.

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So I had to research Thai names and Thai dishes for this chapter LOL! Anyway, hope you liked it! Drop me a review and I'll try to update faster this time.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm sorry if this is horrible. It's been a long week and I just felt "blah" and this chapter was a victim of my blahness. And I know everyone was excited about Jack taking care of Kate, so I hope I did that _some_ justice. Anyway, a bit of fluff and sweetness in here...  
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Chapter 4

Jack took the steps up to his room two by two, pulling Kate's freezing body closer against his, hoping his on warmth can bring her temperature up. His lips were still against her forehead, urging her to wake up. He was just getting his door open when he heard her mumble incoherently against his chest, turning her body slightly against him, burying herself deeper in his warmth.

"Kate, Kate," he spoke softly, "open your eyes, please."

Her eyelids fluttered as she tried to follow his voice and wake up, but she was too tired and too cold, and could only manage another soft mumble, and to open her eyes for the shortest moment before losing the battle against the fatigue again.

He pushed the door open and laid her gently onto the bed. He knew he had to get her warmed up quickly, as her body temperature had dropped severely. She opened her eyes again as he was trying to get the hoodie she was wearing off her.

"Hey," he whispered softly, helping her focus her attention on him, "Kate, I need you to get out of your clothes and into something dry and warm, can you do that?" he asked gently.

Her eyes were clouded with a mixture of fear and confusion, her lips blue, and her whole body trembling, but she managed to nod slightly, moving her hands to the zipper at the front of her hoodie and pulling it down. He stepped away from her for a moment, reaching into his bag to find something for her. He pulled out an old heavy sweatshirt, sweatpants, and socks, and turned back towards her to find her still fumbling with the zipper between her shaking fingers.

He silently moved closer to her, covering her hands wit his, helping her pull the zipper all the way down. He pulled her up slightly to get it off her shoulders and threw it on the floor next to him. "Kate, you have to take your t-shirt and jeans off too, they're soaking wet and cold…" he said, apologetically, and turned around, handing her the clothes he'd gathered for her to change into.

Jack had been practicing medicine for most of his adult life, seeing people naked was part of his daily life, but when he heard her utter the first words she'd said since she woke up, he suddenly felt his throat dry and his feet glued to the ground.

"I… I… can't…" she said, her teeth clattering and her voice mixing with her sobs.

_She's just a patient, Jack,_ he thought to himself, _you are a doctor, and she is your patient. _Jack reasoned with himself urging his feet to move. Her site tugged painfully at his heart, she looked so fragile, and hurt, and he had to remind himself he was a doctor and it took everything to stop himself from rushing to her, to hold her in his arms and tell her it would be ok.

He managed to get his feet to move and made his way to her, staying his doctor mode and sat down next to her. He started to methodically peel her clothes off of her, her shirt then her jeans, trying to focus at the task at hand and not at how this brunette he'd known for less than a day has managed to reach under his skin the way she has.

He helped her change into his clothes and get tucked in under the covers before he walked into the bathroom and turned on the hot water. He gathered all the towels he had and started to soak them. He spent the next hour or so trying to warm her up.

She finally warmed up enough for him to stop worrying about her situation. She was still cold but nowhere near as critical as she had been. He put the towels away, and sat back at the edge of the bed. She was sleeping now, her face calm and the color returning to her skin. He could not resist bringing his has to gently touch her forehead, his finger softly travelling over her skin and he pushed a stray curl off her face.

He got up to leave her side when he felt her hand on his arm. He turned back to her and her eyes were still closed but she whispered, "stay."

He knelt down next her and squeezed her hand gently in his, "I'm not going anywhere," he said, leaning in to plant a quick kiss on her forehead.

He pulled the chair close to the bed and sat down in it, her hand still in his and he watched her sleep before he himself dozed off.

Sunan walked into the little restaurant the next morning, getting up early to clean up and prepare for the day. They were catering a little wedding that day and he wanted to get an early start. He was pleasantly surprised when he turned on the light, looking at the table where he left his friend the evening earlier.

"Nice going, Jack, nice…" he said.

"Are you talking to yourself again, honey," his wife teased walking in behind him, but he just smiled with an air of pride and pointed towards the table, the food on it still relatively untouched and Kate's bag still sitting on the chair where she'd placed it last night.

Cindy laughed lightly and slapped him on the arm playfully, "and you are proud about this… why?" she asked, walking past him and towards the kitchen.

"Well, it was my cooking that turned their evening into… well, you know," he explained smugly.

"You mean your cooking that they apparently did not touch?" she said, enjoying the fact that she was annoying her husband.

He shook his head and gave up, picked up the plates and took them back to the kitchen, "where are the kids?" he asked, finally changing the subject.

"Still in bed."

Upstairs, Maia was jumping off her bed and pulling at her brother's bed cover, urging him to get up as well, "Kavi! Come on!" she said, "wake up! Before mommy comes to wake us!"

The little boy mumbled, pushing his sister away, but the little girl was too insistent. When her brother would not listen to her, she resorted to hitting him with the book she held between her hands.

"What do you want?" he said, finally opening his eyes and making her stop the assault she had started on him.

"I want Jack to read to us before mommy knows we're up!" she said excitedly, waving the book over head.

Within minutes, the two children were walking the stairs up to Jack's room silently, the book now being carried by the older brother.

Jack heard the door to the room squeak open and opened his eyes. He rubbed the sleep out of his tired eyes quickly and snuck a quick glance towards Kate as he turned to see who was at his door.

The two children were standing at the door, with their favorite book, looking at him expectantly.

He smiled at them and motioned for them to come over for their morning storytelling ritual.

Maia immediately hopped into his lap while Kavi found a spot on the foot of the bed, eyeing Kate curiously. "Kids, we're gonna have to keep a little quiet because Kate is sick, ok?"

The little boy nodded, while his curious younger sister looked between Kate and Jack and finally said, "did daddy's food make her sick?"

Jack fought to hide his laugh and shook his head, "no, sweetie, she got sick because she stood long in the rain."

Maia nodded her head and turned in Jack lap, pushing the book into his chest.

Kate woke up to a soft, warm soothing voice speaking calmly. She opened her eyes to see the little boy she'd met the night before sit on the edge of the bed, and the little girl curled in Jack's lap as he read to them, the two children entranced by it all.

She watched them for a moment in silence before Jack noticed she'd woken up.

"Hey," he said, scooting over in his slightly, holding Maia safely against him, "how are you feeling?"

"Better," she said, her throat dry and her voice croaking.

"Jack is reading for us," Maia jumped into the conversation.

"Yeah, I can se that," Kate smiled, "what is her reading for you?"

Maia pulled the book from Jack showed it to Kate, "Alice."

Jack smiled at the little girl and turned back to Kate, "do you need anything? We can stop if…" he said before she cut him off.

"No, no…" she said, "keep on reading, I'm just gonna go back to sleep anyway," she said smiling, settling back into the warm bed and listening to him continue the story.

Kate was back to sleep within minutes and not soon after, Cindy had come upstairs to get her children when she saw them out of their beds. She knew where they would have gone, and a small gasp escaped her lips when she thought they might have walked on Jack and Kate, knowing her kids were not nig fans of knocking.

She called out to them from the bottom of the stairs and in a few moments, they had peeked their heads from Jack's door, feigning innocence when she motioned for them to come straight down. They came down the stairs with a little pout on their faces, followed by Jack.

"Jack, I'm so sorry," she started, but Jack interrupted her.

"It's ok, I was up anyway… I need a favor though," he said.

"Sure… anything," she said.

"I know you guys have that wedding today, and are busy, but Kate's very sick, do you think you can manage to squeeze in a bowl of soup?" he asked.

He sighed in relief when she nodded, "of course, Jack."

"And one more thing," he added before she turned to leave, "do you think you can lend her some clothes? She was in the rain yesterday and her clothes are wet…"

"Sure thing, no problem," she said "and I'll bring up her backpack too, it's still downstairs."

"Thank you so much," he said, "I'll see you later kids."

Cindy brought Kate's bag a few minutes later. Jack dropped it on top of his bag and went back to the chair, watched Kate sleep for a while, her breathing steadier than the night before. She looked so calm and peaceful and he could not understand the sudden feeling of attachment and connection he was feeling for this woman. He shook the thoughts out of his mind and got up. He walked over to his bag to grab some clean clothes and take a shower.

He moved to open his back and accidentally knocked over Kate's bag to the floor.

"Shit," he mumbled, kneeling down to pick it up and the few items that fell from it. He carefully picked up a small wallet and the lighter, dropping back in, and then reached for a paper that had fell deeper under the furniture.

He picked it up and looked at it bewildered, it was a mug shot.

Kate's mug shot.

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***gasp* LOL! ;)**


	5. Chapter 5

I am so sorry for the delay in the update. I have had this outlined for weeks but have not had the time to actually sit down and write. RL has been kicking my ass, lately. Anyway, it's finally here. I hope you guys enjoy it.

Btw, those of you waiting for their special treat on "The Flashbacks Intertwine", I have not forgotten about them. They are also on the way.

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**Chapter 5**

Jack felt his throat dry up and his jaw drop. He looked at the paper in his hand in absolute shock, bewilderment._ It cannot be right! _He thought to himself, looking back and forth between the mug-shot and the woman curled up in his bed, clad in his clothes, her face calm and gentle, a drastic difference between it and the frowning face in the picture in front of him.

An array of emotions floods through him; unsure if he should feel anger, betrayal, disappointment, or even if he is allowed to feel anything at all. He drops the paper back on top of her bag and falls into the chair, watching her sleep. He slumped forward, his head dropping against his chest and his fingers running against the back of his neck. He touched his bruised face gently, _we all have secrets_, he thought, _we're all here to get away from our demons._

He got up from his seat and walked towards the bed, gently pulling the covers that had fallen off the bed back on top of her and stepped into the bathroom, hoping a shower could make sense of all that was happening.

Kate woke up to the sound of a heavy knock at the door. She tiredly opened her eyes, as the knocking got louder. She expected Jack would get it, but when the knock continued she realized the sound of water running in the shower. She assumed it would be the kids, and got out of bed to get the door. She stepped out of the bed, Jack's jumper hanging loosely over her body; she smiled, wrapping her arms around her body, wrapping his warmth around hers.

She opened the door, expecting to see the grinning faces of the children, but instead, she found a smirking face instead, one of a dirty blond six footer, with a stature that could have easily been the one that gave Jack that blue and black face.

The man at the door just smiled, looking at her from head to toe, and just said, "nice." He easily walked passed her and into the room, and Kate could not help the panicking feeling from over taking her.

"I'm sorry," Kate said, almost tripping as she turned around and followed the man into the room, "can I help you?"

"Well, as much as I'd like it to be otherwise," the blond man said, not bothering to look back at her as he continued to scan the room, "I ain't here to see _you_."

"I'm here to see you Romeo," he said just as Jack stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist, having rushed out quickly upon hearing the knocking.

Jack looked in confusion between the two other people in the room. He narrowed his eyes questioningly at Kate and she just shrugged her shoulders, as confused as he was.

Before Jack could question the intruder, the man stepped forward, coming almost toe to toe with Jack and said, "you ain't an easy man to find, Doc."

"Excuse me," Jack almost spat, pushing passed him to grab a shirt off of the bed, "do I know you?"

"Nope," the other man said plainly, "but your Daddy's paying me a nice sum just to find you and take you to him."

Jack scoffed, pulling on his shirt, "no, thanks."

"Listen, Doc," the man said, walking passed Kate and back to standing face to face with Jack, "your dad, he is a pain in the ass, and I can't wait to get him out of my hair, but I need that fifty grand, and I won't get paid until you get over whatever spoiled, little brat issues you have with him and go talk to daddy, ok?"

Jack rolled his eyes and let out an annoyed sigh, "fifty grand?" he said, shaking his head, "the money my father will pay just to tell me I'm a disappointing piece of crap."

Kate, who had been watching the scene unfold, could see the pain clouding jack's eyes, as it mixed with anger. His shoulders were dropped as he sat on the bed. She made her way over to him and placed a soft hand on his shoulder, whispering his name, "Jack…"

Jack pulled back abruptly, not missing the hurt look on Kate's face as he did so.

"Who are you?" Jack said, turning back to the man whose smirk had not left his face since he walked in, seemingly enjoying this little game.

He laughed, amused by Jack's sudden need to get acquainted, "Sawyer," he said stretching his hand out for Jack, who did not bother to take it.

"well, think of it this way, Doc," he said, "the sooner we get this over with, the sooner I get my money and out of the picture, and then you and Freckles here can enjoy the rest of your vacation."

"We're not together," Jack answered, a little too quickly, and Kate felt a little jab of pain through her chest, one that she should not have felt because they indeed were not together.

"Well, that's even better, then," Sawyer said, "let's get this over with and Freckles can show me around town"

The three headed off towards where Christian was staying, the swankiest hotel in the city, of course. Sawyer handed Jack the card key to the room where his father was waiting to see him. Jack turned back to Kate, not sure of what to say, she was not sure she wanted to come along, but she was worried about him, his relationship with his father apparently not the best, and the whole affair seeming to put him in a horrible mood. She wanted to be there for him, like he'd been for her, so she had tagged along. Before any of them could say a word, however, Sawyer had an arm around her shoulder and walking with her over to the lounge bar, "don't worry about us," he said, "we'll be waiting for you right here."

It was forty-five minutes before Jack left his father's room, annoyed, pissed off and angry, as he had expected. He stepped into the lobby and scanned the area for Kate and Sawyer. He took one look in their direction before waling out the front door.

"Hey, Jack's back," Kate said, looking across the lounge as he walked swiftly from the main lobby to the front door.

She and Sawyer had spent the better of the past forty-five minutes sharing a few drinks at the bar and realizing that the world was in fact pretty small. She knew his ex girlfriend, Cassidy, and he was arrested in Tallahassee by an old friend of hers, Kevin.

Kate's brow knotted in confusion watching Jack bolt for the door, completely ignoring Sawyer's latest joke. She hopped off her stool and went after him, almost running into the doorman on her way.

"Hey, Jack, wait up," she called after him.

Jack tried to pretend he hadn't heard her, tried to keep on walking but again, something about this woman was controlling him beyond his own judgment. He eventually came to a stop and turned around to face her.

"Hey," she said, out of breath. He noticed she was still wearing his jumper, looking so small in the baggy attire. He suppressed a smile and just looked at her blankly, "where are you going?"

He looked down, avoiding her green gaze, "you two looked like you were having fun," he said, swallowing hard.

He looked back up at her, her green eyes narrowing and eyeing him questioningly, "listen, Kate, I just need to deal with this … thing… figure some stuff out," he said, avoiding her eyes again, now clouded with hurt, "you things are still in my room, if you want to pass by to pick them up."

He turned around and was walking back into the crowded sidewalk before she had a chance to say anything to that. She felt the hurt and anger bubbling through, not understanding why he'd suddenly become so cold to her, or why he was pushing her away.

Kate walked around the city aimlessly, for hours, before mustering the courage and the will to go back to the house. When she did, she was secretly glad to find Jack was not there. She was not ready to face him again, not when he was treating her like that, when eh would not even talk to her, or look at her.

But it did not take long for things to fall into a clearer perspective. She made her way up to the room and as she went to grab her bag, she saw it. Her mug shot was out of her bag, unfolded and sat on Jack's suitcase. She dropped back, sitting on the bed, holding her head in her hands. It made sense, why he'd been so cold, so detached. But while it made sense, she could not suppress the sudden anger raging through her, _How dare he go through my things?_ she thought, _how dare he judge me?_

She sat there for a few moments, trying to calm down, trying to see it from his perspective. A few minutes later, she wiped her tears, the tears she did not know she had shed, and walked back down. She was planning on bidding Cindy and Sunan farewell and getting out of the city once and for all, like she'd planned two days before; two days before she met that man with the sweet smile and the haunting melody he played.

She said her good byes, with a genuine smile and just as she was heading for the door, Cindy walked behind her, "have you talked to Jack?" she asked, "he's been sitting at the shore for the past five hours."

Kate walked out of the house, with no intention of talking to him, but before she could leave, she remembered that melody, the music she'd heard that she felt could promise her redemption.

She watched him sitting there for a few moments before finally leaving that spot at the front door.

"I wanna tell you what I did," she said, snapping him out of his reverie, and sat next to him before he had a chance to respond to that.


	6. Chapter 6

Thank you so much for the reviews. So glad you guys are enjoying this fic!

I took some liberties with Kate's back-story but tried not to deviate too much. This chapter is mainly dialogue… or actually one long monologue LOL! Hope it does not get too boring.

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Chapter 6**

She sat down in the sand next to him, keeping a cautious safe distance between them. He did not say a word watching her carefully as she took her knelt down, avoiding any eye contact. She stared into the ocean for the longest moment; fighting off the anxiety that raged through her as she prepared to share the story she had never told another person. And now she was going to open her soul up to the stranger at her side. And for some reason, despite the trepidation in her every limb and vein, it felt right.

He gave her all the time she needed. He had no intention to push her on this, and if she was prepared to let him in, he was going to let her do it her way.

"My parents divorced when I was eight," she started, swallowing against the stubborn lump in her throat, "it wasn't all that big of a deal. Dad was in the army so he was never around much anyway," she said, with a sad tone in her voice, "don't get me wrong, the best times of my life were those spent with him, but switching between seeing him whenever he got time off to seeing him on select holidays was not that hard."

She turned to him briefly, locking eyes with him with a sad smile on her lips, which he matched, silently letting her know he might know what it feels like. She turned back to staring at the water and went on, "my mom worked a lot, so I was used to being on my own. And I liked it that way. I had Tom, my best friend since we were both out of diapers," she continued with a little chuckle.

"We were ok for a while, mom and me, she had her work and I was just a carefree kid who worried more about climbing trees and collecting worms than anything else," she added and he chuckled slightly at the image of a young freckled Kate, her face covered in dirt, hanging by her knees from a tree branch. "Less than a year after the divorce, mom started dating this guy, Wayne," she said his name with a disgusted slur, "and it took him just a couple of weeks to move in and make the place his own."

"He never acknowledged my existence, and I liked it that way," she said, playing aimlessly with the sand at her fingers, and he had not moved his eyes off of her once since she'd started, "he left me alone, and I ignored him as much as I could. He had some business in town with his cousin, but I to this day have no clue what that business was. I never knew what my mom saw in him, still don't, but he became her world. She loved him in a way I don't think she ever did love my father, and I will never understand it. My dad was this amazing man, is… he is an amazing man, and Wayne? Wayne was… well… he was a piece of shit," she spit those words out, shaking her head.

"Two weeks before my eleventh birthday, he lost the business. He was broke and in debt to almost everyone in town," she continued, "and that's when things just went from bad to worse. He started drinking, a lot. He would come back each day reeking of alcohol, and too drunk to make it past the front door. My mom started working two jobs to help him with his debts and I saw less and less of her. She was never home when he came back and I had to deal with him."

She shifted slightly, turning slightly towards him and he could see that her eyes were glistening with unshed tears. He put a hand to her shoulder for the shortest moment, reassuring her that he was there, and that if she wanted to stop he would understand. But she was not stopping, not now that the walls were finally brought down for the first time in a long time. It was surprisingly liberating, getting it off her chest.

"My mom had promised me something special on my birthday. I guess she was feeling guilty for ignoring me for the past three years. She took the day off from work, something she had never done before and never did again. She let me invite a bunch of my friends, and she stayed home, cooking, baking and actually bought me a few presents," she sais, the memory of her mother's special treatment of her drawing a smile on her lips.

"I was at Tom's house when Wayne got home that day. My mom threw me out when I got too restless in the kitchen. He came earlier than usual, probably thrown out of the bar. I still do not know what exactly happened to set him off, but he started hitting her, beat her up until she lost consciousness. I…" she was stopped by the sob sneaking out of her throat, "I was so pissed that my birthday was ruined, I refused to even go see her in the hospital. I blamed her for my birthday being ruined."

She was silent again, quickly wiping her eyes with the back of her hand and going back to looking out at the water, the setting sun now painting the horizon with a vibrant gradient of res and oranges.

He watched her, waiting for her to let him back in as she collected herself again. He understood the weight of getting this off her chest and letting him in.

"And that's when it started, the hitting. Everyday. I'd hide under my bed, try to shut down the sounds, but I knew what was happening, knew what he was doing to her, but I just couldn't…" she shook her head, the tears now falling freely at this point, "and she just let him. She never reported him. She hit the cuts and the bruises, she gave him excuses, made up stories how she'd bumped into the cupboard, or slipped down the stairs… but everyone knew. Except, no one intervened."

He placed a gentle hand at the small of her back, his thumb circling gently, and she did not flinch away. His hand stayed there, sitting silently, supportively as she went on.

"He never touched me, and as much as I wanted to stay there for her, I… I had to get out. I left for college, went as far away as I could." She said, her voice getting stronger, suddenly, "I thought I could get myself a good degree, a decent job and maybe someday have enough money to get my mom out the mess she'd put herself into."

"But when I came back home after graduation, I had been accepted to a good job, I had a place in the city, and I told my mom the plan, she…" Kate swallowed against another sob, "I found out she does not even want to get out of that mess, she wanted it," Kate scoffed, an unamused laugh escaping her lips, "_You can't help who you love, Katherine_, she said to me. She loved him! That son of a bitch who hit her everyday, made her work two, three jobs because he was too lazy to get off his ass, and she _loved_ him!"

Her tears were falling freely and she made no attempt at hiding it anymore, the memories taking over and she let them. Jack's hand was still on her back and she was secretly grateful for that, not sure she would have been able to go on if he'd been distant.

"So I left, again, and we didn't talk for the longest time. But… three years ago, I got a call from Tom's mom. My mom had cancer, terminal, and I couldn't just stay angry at her, I just couldn't," she said, "so I went back and I foolishly expected to find her at the house or maybe the hospital. She was told she had two months to live, but no, she was at work, at the diner. The son of a bitch was making her work!" she spat out in anger.

"And if making her work was not enough, she has 6 stitches over her eye and wrist was broken. I… He walked into the diner while I was there and we fought. He lifted his hand to slap me but I stopped him. I stormed out of the place, but not before screaming at the top of my lungs that I was going to kill him."

"And I was going to. I wanted to kill him, Jack. I had never been so sure about wanting anything else as much as I knew I wanted Wayne dead," she spoke between sobs, "and I went to the house. I knew he would be there before mom came back, and he would be drunk, so it would have been easy. Too easy. I sat at the front porch, flipping a lighter in my hand. I sat and I waited."

She was quiet for a moment, feeling Jack's hand go still at her back but never leaving that spot. She swallowed hard and went on, "but as I sat there, I got text from Beth, my friend from work. It was her son's birthday, and I loved that kid," she said with a smile returning briefly to her face, "she had sent me a picture of him riding the bike I had bought him for his birthday. He was smiling, a huge smile with those two front teeth gone and chocolate cake all over his face. I couldn't do it. I wasn't a murderer, Jack. I could not just take a man's life away… I got up and left, walked back to the motel I was staying in."

He felt her stiffen under his touch, and he knew that next part was probably the hardest part to come. "Two hours later, cops break down the door to my room and arrest me. My mother's house had caught on fire with Wayne inside. He'd died within minutes," she let out a scoff, "perfect, right? The universe has one amazing sense of humor."

"I was the only suspect of course. Fifteen people had heard me at the diner, the neighbors had all seen me at the house with a lighter. No one saw me leave, appropriately," she spoke angrily, "Mrs. Roberts, my mom's neighbor said she had no doubt I was the one. That I had murder in my eyes since I was 6 and shot her cat with a Nerf gun. My mother, my own mother! She said I was capable of murder and that I had wanted Wayne dead since he took my father's place sixteen years ago."

She was crying now, her shoulders shaking, her voice broken and laced with teary sobs. He pulled her closer and she fell into him, resting her whole body against his. Her head fell onto his shoulder and he held her tight, "everything proves that I did it, I know, but I didn't, Jack. I swear I did not do it, you have to believe me!"

He held her tightly, her face buried into his neck as she wept, her finger holding tightly to his shirt. He rocked her slowly, his hands rubbing soothingly along her back.

"I do, I believe you," he spoke softly into her hair. He kissed the top of her head as he felt his own tear well up in his eyes.

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**Well, I hope that was not too boring. Next chapter, more on Jack's reaction, Jack tells Kate what his father wanted and makes a BIG decision. And maybe some fluff before some more angst!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

They sat like that for the longest time, him holding on to her while she cried into his chest. He knew she probably needed that, to let it all out, assuming she had never let herself be that vulnerable, or let heat had happened to her to really get out into the open it, and allow it to take its toll on her.

The early evening breeze was brushing against them, and the warm waves were lapping at their feet, and she finally pulled away from him. She wiped her. Face with the back of her hand and looked up at him, a shy and slightly embarrassed smile on her lips.

"I'm sorry, you must think I am totally unhinged," she said, turning away to hide her tear stained face from him.

He brought a hand to her cheek and softly turned her face back to look at him, instinctually wiping a thumb across it tom wipe away the few stubborn tears that clung to her freckled face. "No, Kate, absolutely not," he spoke gently, "I am actually shocked it took you so long to crack. What you went through... I cannot imagine how horrible that must have been."

She smiled at him, leaning ever so slightly into the hand that still rested on her cheek.

They sat in silence for a while, him thinking how he can help her, with his father's connections he should not find a lot of trouble finding a lawyer good enough to get her out of the mess she was in, if not through the legal channels then definitely through the not so legal. He was not sure how to bring up the topic, knowing she was probably still not that open to having him that involved.

She did not give him a chance to open the topic though, jumping off to the next conversation, trying to get the attention of her, feeling uneasy for being so vulnerable around him.

"So what did your father want?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"What?" he said, snapping out of his thoughts.

"Your father..." she said, "I mean if you want to talk about it, you seemed upset when you left the hotel earlier today."

"Oh," he said, absently scratching the back on his back, travelling his fingers through his short cropped hair, "he needs me to go to Sidney to do surgery on a woman he knows."

"That doesn't sound so horrible," she chimed in.

"You don't know my dad," he scoffed, "things were not that simple. He started by telling me how I was acting like a spoiled brat, running away from my responsibilities and hiding in Thailand. Then he went on to tell me how I was a waste of talent, spending my time on the beach instead of collecting awards back home. And then it was about how ungrateful I am for the chances and opportunities I get which I look at in disdain. And then he worked in how I was breaking my mother's heart by denying her the grandchild she wants to see before she dies. Then he reminded me how useless I am, having the skills that I have and not using them to bring good things to mankind. And then he told me that he needs me to do this surgery."

"Wow..." was all Kate could say after Jack let all of that off his chest. She rubbed a hand over his forearm gently.

"Sawyer said your father is a surgeon too, can't he do it?" she asked simply.

"Of course he can, but then if it fails, he will need someone to blame. This way, he can blame me right away, without bothering with some elaborate tale, or throwing the blame on a poor nurse." Jack said, shaking his head.

"Are you going to do it?" she asked.

He shook his head, "I don't know... The surgery is tricky, not a lot of surgeons want to perform, apparently. But... I'd done something similar, not so long ago and it was a success. So either I do it, save this woman's life and show my father that he still has me wrapped around his little finger, or I don't do it, the woman spends her life paralyzed or dies even, and I stand up to my father for the first time in my life."

"So I guess there's not much of a choice in it then, right?" she asked and watching him nod slightly before pushing up off the sand and reaching a hand out to her. She took his hand and pulled herself up, wiping the sand of her jeans, looking at him expectantly, "what now?"

"Now, we go back to the house. You get to use the shower and get out of my filthy jumper while I go tell my father what he is expecting to hear. And when I come back, we get to have that that nice little dinner I still owe you. What do you say?" he said, smiling.

She smiled back, ducking her head shyly, biting her lip, "I say that sounds like a plan."

He went to talk to his father while she enjoyed a nice long shower, something she had truly missed for the past few months hitch hiking through south East Asia. He did not let his meeting with his father put a damper on their dinner, which went smoothly the second time around. They shared a nice meal and small talk about nothing much in particular, enjoying the simplicity and the normalcy of it. By the time they had finished dinner it was pretty late, and with a little struggle he managed to convince her to stay the night over.

Kate woke up to the sound of shuffling in the room. She opened her eyes to the sight of Jack, wearing nothing more than a pair of jeans, packing his bag. She sat back a moment, realizing not for the first time how handsome he truly was. His tanned sculpted back, the muscles clenching as he worked was truly a sight to enjoy. She snapped herself out of her daydream and got out of bed. She thought back to the enjoyable evening they shared, and especially to the last conversation before they had said goodnight. She knew he was disappointed that she wouldn't go to Sydney with him, but it did not make sense. She was safer hiding out in Phuket than crossing another border. He said he understood that, but she did see the slight disappointment in his face. Although some part of her did want to spend more time with him, even risking crossing borders, the rational part of her brain won out, they were still technically strangers, on two different paths in life.

She stepped out of bed and walked over to him. She looked over his shoulder and saw him staring at her mug shot. She cleared her throat and said, "I take better pictures than that, smaller too if you want one for your wallet."

He smiled, turning back to look at her and handed her the piece paper. "This was still with my stuff, I thought you wanted it back." she took it from him and folded it immediately into her pocket.

They got dressed in silence and he finished packing. He said good-bye to his hosts; especially the two little children who'd found their place in his heart and took a taxi back to his father's hotel.

The deal with his father was that Sawyer accompanies Jack, much to both men's annoyance. Jack did not appreciate his father sending a babysitter with him and Sawyer was not pleased Christian was withholding the last payment until Jack performed the surgery. The only good thing was that Christian was paying for the whole affair, the package including a furnished suite in the fanciest hotels in Sydney.

Christian took Jack aside once they made it to the hotel lobby, while Kate took the opportunity to talk to Sawyer. She needed to talk to him about something that Jack was better off not knowing, for the time being.

They met back in the lobby a half hour later, Kate sitting on Jack's bag. He looked at her, watching her twirl her fingers in her lap, biting her lower lip.

"You're mad at me," she said plainly when he was standing next to her.

"I'm not... I just don't understand why you won't come with me... Us," he sad, a slight sadness in his voice.

"Jack... We talked about it this. It's not safe, for any of us," she said, standing up and taking his hand in hers, "please understand this."

He nodded, "yes, you're right...I'm sorry."

He smiled at her, a smile she gladly returned, despite the sadness that was bubbling through her at the thought that this was the last time she would be seeing this man who has come to mean so much these last few days. She squeezed his hand in his before pulling it away and stepping back, ready to leave. He stopped her, he gentle hand grasping her arm and turning her around. His vouch was almost a whisper as he said, "be careful."

She nodded, and looked up to meet his gaze, so warm and full of genuine concern, something she had not seen in anyone in along time. The tears in her eyes had become evident, and they were matching his. Touching her was a pleasure he was allowing himself one last time before they parted ways, and even though the thought of never getting a chance to feel her skin against his was torture, allowing himself that feeling one last time seemed even more painful.

She reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself against him. She felt his strong arms go around her waist and pull her even tighter against him. She felt him bury his face in her hair, and her warm breath danced against his skin. They stood in their embrace for the longest moment, neither ready to let go just yet, but eventually someone had to do it. She pulled back slightly, taking one last breath, inhaling in his smell and warmth. She brought her lips to his cheek and whispered, planting a quick kiss, "good bye, Jack."

**So here it is. Hope you guys liked it :D leave me a review, please ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry for the delay. Like I said, RL is killing me! It's a short one, but it sorts of sets up the next part of this fic. Hope you guys enjoy it!

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**Chapter 8**

"So, window seat or aisle seat?" Sawyer asked as the two men lined up next to their seats.

"It doesn't matter," Jack answered halfheartedly.

"Of course it matters, Doc! I love the window seat, but if you're the kind that's gonna complain every time I want to visit the toilet then you get the window seat. Unless you're the kind that goes to the little boys' room every two minutes," Sawyer said, earning an exasperated sigh from Jack.

"Fine, take the window seat," Jack said, dropping his bag in the overhead compartment and moving to let Sawyer in.

They were sitting in first class, all on Christian's dime of course, and Sawyer was making sure he was exploiting all the perks that came with it.

"Man, it sure is great travelling like this. I wouldn't mind being on your dad's payroll full time," Sawyer said, finding the button that let him lean all the way back.

"Be my guest," Jack said sarcastically.

"Quit your complaining, man. This is not half bad," Sawyer said, annoyed by Jack's bad mood that had followed him the past few hours.

"Try being his son," Jack spat.

"Well, at least you someone's son," Sawyer finally said, turning away from Jack and going back to his book.

After their lunch had been served, both men went about it in silence until Jack finally spoke up. "What did you and Kate talk about before we left?"

Sawyer turned to face him, and eyebrow raised, and a smirk on his lips, "what is it to you Doc?"

"Nothing… I was just… making conversation," Jack said, regretting having opened the topic in the first place.

"Well, I'm afraid that's between me and her, Doc," Sawyer said, the smirk spreading wider across his lips, "you see, Freckles and I… we have this connection."

Jack rolled his eyes, turning back to his meal, trying hard not to show the jealousy that crept through him.

They spent the rest of the flight in relative silence. Neither speaking more than was necessary, before immediately going back to their respective book and movie.

They landed in Sydney in the early evening, found a cab and made it to their hotel suite. They were sharing a huge room, a furnished apartment more that a hotel room. This was of course being paid for by Christian, bringing both men to do what he needs them to do. Why they could not each have their own room was a mystery to both men.

They reluctantly ended up having dinner together, sitting on opposite sides of a booth, each with a burger and a beer in front of him, eating silently.

"This isn't exactly a picnic for me either, Doc," Sawyer finally said, breaking the heavy silence that had been looming around them for hours.

Jack looked up from his burger, "I know," he said, trying to force a smile on his face.

"So what do you say, we at least try to act like we stand each other, at least for one night, before tomorrow comes, and you have to go do whatever your daddy is paying me to make sure you do," Sawyer said, taking a swig from his drink.

Jack took a moment to take in Sawyer's suggestion. He had a point. The days to come were not going to be any fun, and as much as he disliked Sawyer, it was slightly a relief to have a familiar face around.

"Sure," he finally said, a genuine smile on his face.

They managed to get into a civil, and at times fun conversation. The evening changed from an awkwardly silent one to a bearable evening between two people who were civil around each other.

A few drinks later, both men found it easier to be around the other, actually enjoying each others company.

"That girl at the bar is checking you out," Sawyer said, motioning towards the blonde sitting on the bar, unabashedly trying to get Jack's attention.

Jack sneaked a quick look, "not my type," he said with a chuckle.

"Oh, so tall, hot, sexy is not up to your standards, big shot?" Sawyer retorted.

Jack laughed, "No, it's the blonde that's not my type."

"So you wouldn't mind if I take a shot at that," Sawyer asked, winking at the girl on the bar.

"Be my guest," Jack answered, laughing as he reached for his drink.

"So, it's not blondes huh?" Sawyer asked, ignoring Jack's invitation, "brunettes then? Kinda like Freckles, then?"

Jack cringed, not appreciating Sawyer bringing Kate into this, between them, again, "Kate and I are just friends."

They fell into a comfortable silence after that, Sawyer having no intention to pick the issue any further, not wanting to ruin the civil status they had reached.

"Why are you doing this, Sawyer?" Jack asked, half expecting Sawyer to blow him off with a sarcastic comment.

Instead, Sawyer looked at him and asked, "Doing what?"

"Working for my father? Babysitting me?" Jack said, laughing lightly.

Sawyer sat quietly for a moment, letting the question sink in, and wondering if he really wanted to let Jack know or not.

When he finally spoke, it was not at all what Jack had expected, "I have a daughter, back home," he said, taking a sip form his drink, "I haven't exactly been father of the year to her. So I'm cleaning up my act, making some money so I can go back and be a daddy to my little girl."

Jack looked at him, seeing the human being under the jackass shell in Sawyer for the first time. He just nodded, "I hope we can get you back to you daughter as soon as possible then."

Jack and Sawyer walked through the doors of the hospital Christian had told them his friend was at bright and early in the morning. Sawyer stood back as Jack introduced himself to chief of surgery, as per his father's instructions.

Jack learned more himself from the situation. One of the reasons his father was not operating himself on this friend was that because the family had refused him to perform it. They had no idea he would be sending his son though. The chief of surgery was not that excited either. The idea of having a young surgeon coming half way from across the world to perform a surgery that their staff was too apprehensive about performing did not stand well with him or his staff. However, the chief was willing to allow Jack to study the case, and propose something that the hospital was ready to consider.

After about an hour, with Sawyer having read every journal on the table next to him, Jack walked out of the chief's office.

"Everything work out ok?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah…" Jack said, shaking his head, "they're going to let me check Miss Littleton's case and we'll see where it…"

Jack was interrupted by a familiar voice coming from behind him, a voice he had not heard since his graduation from med school, "Jack?"

Jack spun around, eying the source of the voice with disbelief. He had not seen his college best friend in years, ever since they both graduated and she moved to Sydney with her finace. He watched her make her way to him, and managed to say one word.

"Juliet!"

* * *

MUAHAHAHAHAHA! Didja see that one coming?

Sawyer is gonna go back to being a jerk, don't worry about it ;) and Kate won't be gone for too long, I promise. And this is a Jate fic, aas much as I'm gonna enjoy enjoy writing Juliet, this is still one million percent Jate. I promise.

Next chapter, we meet yet another Lostie! And… do you want to know what Sawyer and Kate talked about that Jack was not privy to?

Review and next chapter comes quicker!


	9. Chapter 9

Here's the new chapter. I know I don't always thank you guys for your reviews, but I just wanted you to know, that they mean the world to me. I really, really appreciate every review and everyone's who's reading this, whether you're reviewing or not. So, thank you so, so, so much. And enough rambling from me, here's chapter 9!

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Chapter 9**

"You had dinner yet?" Jack asked, walking out of his room into the TV room of their small apartment.

Sawyer was flipping idly between the channels, a bottle of beer resting next to his feet on the coffee table, "nope, not yet. Wanna go to the burger place down the street?" he answered.

"Actually, I'm gonna meet Juliet for dinner. You want to come along?" Jack said.

"No thanks, wouldn't want to be the third wheel to your hot date," Sawyer said, turning to look at Jack who was now standing behind the couch.

"It's not a date, we're just catching up," Jack said, with a noticeable roll of his eyes.

"Whatever you say, Doc," Sawyer said, waving him off, "don't worry about me, I can feed myself."

Just then, Jack's phone rang; he stepped back into his room for a moment, and then came back out.

"That was her, she's downstairs," he said, making sure to make it to the door as quickly as possible to avoid any other snide remarks, "I'll see you later."

Juliet took Jack to a little restaurant not too far from where he was staying, and they quickly got into catching up, having lost contact at some point after graduating and her moving to Sydney with her then fiancé.

"So, I'm assuming you and Goodwin are no longer together?" Jack asked.

"Wow… no, that ship sailed off a long time ago," she said, smiling sadly at that memory.

"But you're still here. I would have thought you'd come back," Jack said.

"Well, I like it here. I love my work, I've made some great friends, it's home now. I don't really have much to go back to," Juliet answered.

"What about Rachel?" Jack asked, remembering how close Juliet and her sister were.

"Rachel's got her husband and son. We visit each other a lot, but she has a whole new family. Not much time to watch over her little sister anymore," she said, "what about you, Jack? Is there a Mrs. Dr. Jack Shephard back home?"

She watched as Jack's face took a disgruntled look, "there's an ex-Mrs. Dr. Jack Shephard" he said, trying to hide the annoyance with a joke.

"Her loss," Juliet said, winking playfully at him.

Jack laughed, "thanks, I guess."

"Ok, forget her. Tell me, what are you doing here?" she quickly changed the topic, sensing Jack's discomfort.

Jack tried to give her the short version of the story, how he'd been in Phuket, how his father came looking for him and how he was not in Sydney to perform an impossible surgery on someone he had never met, a surgery the hospital and family were not excited about.

"So, tomorrow, I'm going in to see Miss Littleton, and we'll see where this takes us," he finished.

"Littleton? Carole Littleton?" Juliet asked, her interest peeking at the name.

"Yea… you know her?" Jack asked.

"Her daughter, Claire, is a patient of mine. She's eight months pregnant now. Six months ago, she was with her mom, driving just a few blocks from here. They got into an accident that put Carole in the coma," Juliet explained.

"What happened to the daughter?" Jack asked.

"She came out of it miraculously unharmed with only a few scratches and bruises," Juliet said, "it has been a horrible time for her. The father of her child left just a few weeks after her accident. Her mom's condition has not improved. Her only other family, her aunt, blames her for the accident."

"What about her father?" Jack prodded further.

"He's never been in the picture. He had an affair with Carole way back, and a few years after Claire was born, he disappeared," Juliet said, "actually… I think he did show up recently, after their accident. Claire told me that some American had come to the hospital to see her mother, and he wanted to meet Claire, but her aunt kicked him out, told him never to show up again. And when he tried to contact Claire, she pushed him away. I don't blame her. The guy sounds like a scumbag, to be honest."

They went through dinner while reminiscing over university years, old friends and their professional careers mostly. It was almost eleven when Jack walked back into the apartment. Sawyer was pacing the living room, talking on the phone, with his back to the front door. Jack knew that he should not, but he could not help over hearing Sawyer's end of the conversation.

_So, everything's ok?... You met with the guy?... He had all the paper work you needed?... When will you be arriving?... Ok, stay safe. I'll see you then._

"Oh, honey, you're home!" Sawyer exclaimed sarcastically when he turned to see Jack, "how was the date?"

"It wasn't a date," Jack said, "who was that?"

"Who was who?" Sawyer asked, shoving the phone back into his pocket.

"On the phone?" Jack asked, knowing he had no right to ask that, but not being able to curb his curiosity.

"My clarinet teacher," Sawyer answered, blankly.

"Seriously," Jack said.

"My ballet instructor," Sawyer said, again with a blank look on his face.

Jack just stared at him, giving up and moving towards his room.

"My tap dance partner? My yoga guru? My Lamaze coach?" he heard Sawyer call after him before bursting into a fit of laughs.

The next morning, Jack was up earlier than Sawyer, and he did not bother waking him up. He had a long day at the hospital, meeting with Carole's doctors, studying her case and the dreaded part of meeting her family, specifically her sister, who was the one taking the decisions for her. He left him a note that he would be gone most of the day and left the apartment.

Jack's day was as hectic as he imagined it to be. The other doctors were not giving him as hard of a time as he had imagined, they were actually very helpful, which led him to believe that most of the resistance he would be getting would be coming form the sister. Luckily for him, he would not be meeting her for a few days because she was on a business trip out of town.

Later in the afternoon, Sawyer finally made contact with him.

"Morning, darlin'" the southerner's voice rang through the line.

"Did you just wake up?" Jack asked.

"Don't judge me! I'm still on US time. You still doing daddy's little task?" Sawyer asked.

Jack cringed, "I'm at the hospital if that is what you're asking. What are you up to? Are you gonna come here and babysit me?"

"As much as I know you'd love to have my pretty face next to you all day, I have things to do," Sawyer said.

"Things? You've been here 48 hours. What sort of things do you have to do?" Jack asked.

"Well, if you must ask, I have to go pick someone up from the airport," Sawyer said.

"Who?" Jack asked incredulously.

"I told you last night. My clarinet teacher," Sawyer said before turning the phone off.

"Hey, I've been looking for you!" Jack turned towards the voice to find Juliet, "there's someone I want you to meet." Juliet said, and that's when Jack saw the young woman walking behind her.

"This is Claire," Juliet said, motioning to the very pregnant girl by her side. "Claire, this is Jack Shephard. Jack, Claire Littleton."

"Hi," Claire said, extending her hand for Jack, "it's very nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too," Jack said, taking her hand.

"So, you're him. The miracle doctor from Los Angeles?" Claire said, teasingly with a sweet smile on her lips.

"Well, I…" Jack stuttered, bringing his hand back to rub at the back of his neck.

"Don't worry. I don't believe in miracles anyway. So, no pressure," she answered sweetly, but Jack noticed the tone of disappointment in her voice.

"I'm gonna try to do everything that I can, Claire, I promise," He said.

"I'm sure you will…" she said, suddenly looking at him oddly.

"What is it?" Jack asked, self-consciously.

"I don't know… It's just that there is something very familiar about you. Are you sure we've never met before?" she asked and watched Jack silently shake his head, "oh, it's probably just the hormones speaking, but you just remind me so much of someone," she said, laughing slightly, but unable to shake that feeling that she knew that man from somewhere.

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Next Chapter: The Jate Drought Will Cometh to and End!


	10. Chapter 10

How's this for a quick update? The longest chapter yet! Hope you guys enjoy it!

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**Chapter 10**

Sawyer stood among the crowds awaiting their loved ones at the airport, waiting for Kate, hoping not to see her walk out of the doors in handcuffs. When she had taken him to the side to talk to him in Phuket, he tried to convince her against her plans. She had asked him to hook her up with his contact in Sydney, the one he had mentioned in one of their chats. She wanted to go with them, but not without careful planning, with the right cover and proper paper work to make it there without being caught. He had voiced his opinion, that he thought it was way too dangerous. She was safe for the time being Phuket. He had no idea what she had done, it was something she clearly did not want to share, but he knew enough to know that a trip to Australia would be too dangerous. However, she had been adamant, stubborn enough to make him give her the contacts information and have him come pick her up in broad daylight.

He let out a sigh of relief when he saw her walk out the door, a loose backpack slung over her shoulder and wide smile across her lips. He let out a breath he had been holding, partly excited about seeing she was safe, and partly grateful that he would not have to tell Jack that he had gotten Kate arrested.

"Freckles, you made it!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Yup! I did! Did you tell Jack?" She said.

"Wow. No thanks Sawyer, good to see you Sawyer, I wouldn't have made it without you Sawyer? I am genuinely hurt. Oh, look a cop. Should I…" he said, before Kate shoved an elbow in to his chest.

"Hello, Sawyer, thank you for helping me, Sawyer, how are you, Sawyer?" she said mockingly.

"There you go, that is more like it," he said, "although you could drop the attitude. I am fine, you're welcome, and not, your precious boyfriend has no clue you're risking your neck and mine to surprise him."

"He's not my boyfriend," Kate mumbled, but Sawyer just grinned ignoring her and walking out to get them a taxi.

They arrived at the apartment a while later, and the exhaustion on Kate's face was evident. She had been travelling for two days and it was starting to take its toll on her. The got out of the cab across the street from the building just as Juliet was stopping her car at the entrance and Jack was getting into the car with her.

He did not see her, but saw Jack as he got in the car with the blond woman and they drove off.

"Who's that?" she asked Sawyer, trying fruitlessly to hide the jealousy in her tone.

"That's Juliet. She's a friend of Jack it seems. They've been hanging out since we got here," Sawyer said innocently, not registering the look that took over Kate's face as she whispered "oh."

"Wanna go grab something to eat?" Sawyer asked as they walked into the apartment.

"No, I just want to sleep," Kate said, fighting against her drooping eyes.

"Alright, take my room. I can stay on the couch," Sawyer said and watched her disappear into his room.

Jack came back from dinner with Juliet and Claire a few hours later. He had a surprisingly good time having been wary of having Claire there. He thought it was strange that Claire came along, but she seemed nice enough. He immediately noticed that Juliet had taken more of an older sister role to Claire rather than just her doctor. He was relieved to see that she was hanging with them as a friend and not as a patient's daughter. Soon he forgot that she was indeed Carole's daughter, and was genuinely enjoying her company. They had dropped him off and said goodnight when he walked into the dark, quiet and empty apartment. He had not seen Sawyer all day, and as much as he hated to admit it, he found himself missing him slightly.

He called out for him, but heard nothing. He did see a small light in Sawyer's bedroom, so he poked his head in out of curiosity. Surely, Sawyer would not be sleeping now. He barely woke up a few hours ago.

He opened the door slightly and looked in. Jack gasped slightly when he saw her, Kate. She was lying in Sawyer's bed, sleeping, looking as peaceful and calm as he remembered.

He felt a surge of jealousy rage through him. He knew something was happening between them when they'd shared that private chat. He kicked himself for thinking it was something innocent. He knew he had no right getting angry. After all, there was nothing between him and Kate. He was the one constantly insisting on that. But as rational as he tried to be, the idea of Kate and Sawyer together got to him on a level he did not understand. Did he have feelings for Kate? He was not sure what that should mean. He barely knew her. Well, he felt like they have known each other for years, but in reality, they had only known each other for a few days. Then, why has he not been able to stop thinking about her since he said good bye to her?

Jack felt his phone vibrate and cursed under his breath, stepping out of the room to answer it.

The caller id said "Sawyer", and he felt that angry rage flood him again. He gritted his teeth, took a deep breath and answered.

Sawyer had been arrested, some bar fight he'd started, and needed Jack to bail him out. For the shortest moments, Jack considered having him spend the night there, but soon found himself dialing Juliet's number asking for her help.

Half an hour later, Sawyer walked out of his cell to be welcomed by three faces, Jack, Juliet and a young, very pregnant woman.

"doc, doc, stranger… thank you for the rescue," Sawyer said, smiling smugly, before throwing Juliet a disapproving look that no one else noticed.

"C'mon, let's get out of here," Jack said, ushering the group out of the precinct.

He was holding the door open for Claire, when he saw a familiar face walk past him.

"SHANNON?" he heard Claire shriek from behind him, and he remembered where he knew that face from. Shannon Rutherford, her parents and his parents were members of the same country club. How does Claire know her? he thought to himself.

He turned around to see the two young women embracing ecstatically.

"What are you doing here?" Claire asked.

"We're here on vacation, supposedly, but my brother, God's gift to humanity, got involved in some peace protest and got arrested," Shannon said, with a roll of her eyes.

"Boone's not usually the trouble maker, you sure you had nothing to do with it?" Jack asked, shocking both women.

"Doctor Shephard? What are you doing here?" Shannon asked, her looking at him like a deer in headlights.

"In Sydney or in the police station?" he asked jokingly.

"Both?" Shannon said.

"Seeing a patient and bailing out that guy," he said, pointing towards Sawyer who was apparently engaged in a heated discussion with Juliet.

"Wait, how do you two know each other?" Claire asked, interrupting the exchange.

"Our parents run in the same circles," Jack said, leaving out the part where his girlfriend in high school was their baby sitter and he spent one too many evenings fooling out with her in their house.

"Hold on, how do you two know each other?" Shannon asked.

"His patient is my mom," Claire explained, "small world, huh? And before you ask, Jack, Shannon and I met in ballet camp a few years ago and have been friends since."

"Ok, it was great seeing you guys, but I should go rescue my pretty boy brother before he becomes someone's bitch in there," Shannon said jokingly, "I'll give you a call, we'll do something."

In the meantime, while Jack and Claire were busy chatting with Shannon, Sawyer took advantage of the situation and pulled Juliet aside.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he snarled at her.

"What are you talking about?" she asked innocently.

"You know perfectly well what I am talking about!" he said, his anger evident in his voice and glare.

"No, James, I don't. Why don't you explain it to me?" she said, smirking.

"I _know_. And I know you _know_. And we both know perfectly well that them _knowing_ is the last thing he wants. Especially now." he said, starting to calm down slightly.

"They are brother and sister, James. They have a right to know!" Juliet said.

"That is not the point. The point is this is none of our business and we have no right being the ones to tell them," Sawyer explained.

"I know that. I have no intention of telling them. There's no harm in them getting to know each other, though, is there?" Juliet said.

"You think they won't figure it out? As much as I hate to say it, the Doc's not that dumb." Sawyer said.

"Well, it won't be on us if they figure it out on their own. I don't see why we should be in charge of covering up Christian's problems." Juliet said, exasperated of the whole issue.

"You know, he warned me about you." Sawyer said, finally giving up on the argument.

"Funny, he never mentioned you." Juliet said teasingly as Jack and Claire finally made their way to them.

"Come on, Doc. Let's walk back; I could do with the fresh air." Sawyer said, not giving Jack the chance to reply before walking off.

On their way back, Sawyer waited for Jack to mention Kate. Surely, he should be excited that she was here. But Jack never mentioned the issue once, leading Sawyer to believe he had not gone back to the apartment. They were still a few blocks away from the apartment when Sawyer broke the silence, "I'm gonna go away for a few days. You think you can behave?"

"Where are you going?" Jack asked.

"Miami. It's my daughter's birthday. I promised I'd make it this year," Sawyer explained.

"Is Kate going with you?" Jack asked, ducking his head so Sawyer does not read his face.

"So you did see her! I've been waiting for you to bring that up!" Sawyer said.

"Is she?" Jack said, still not looking at Sawyer.

"What? Going with me? Why on earth would she want to do that?" Sawyer asked, confused by Jack's behavior. He had assumed Jack would be excited to see Kate, not throw her at him.

"Isn't that why… Aren't you two…you know…" Jack stammered, unable to say the words out loud.

"No, I don't," Sawyer said, finally understanding why Jack was acting that way.

"Forget it," Jack said, walking past him.

Sawyer sped up, catching up with Jack and shoving him slightly, "For a prodigy, miracle working, genius surgeon, you're a bit thick! You have any idea why Kate came to Sydney?" Sawyer asked and watched Jack shake his head, "well, I suggest you ask her." Sawyer grumbles, "between you and Blondie, you managed to give me a horrible migraine. I'm gonna go get a drink, get my mind off you annoying doctors." Sawyer exclaimed and stormed off.

Jack walked into the apartment, warily, unsure how to deal with seeing Kate, his feelings confusing him. Kate was seated on the couch, watching reruns of some sitcom on TV when she heard the door click behind her. She turned to see Jack, and before she could stop and consider her actions, she was leaping off the couch and wrapping her arms around his necks, crushing him in her embrace. It took him a moment, but Jack quickly responded, wrapping his arms around her waist, and pulling her closer to him even though she'd thought it impossible. He lost himself for a moment, his confusion gone as he drowned in her scent, the feel of her hair brushing against his nose as he buried his face in her neck. Kate forgot for a moment that she'd seen him with Juliet, and allowed herself to be wrapped in his arms, his scent so familiar, something she had missed in the past few days, his arms around her giving her a rare sense of safety.

The reality kicked in eventually, causing the two to step back abruptly.

"Hey," Kate said.

"Hey," Jack replied causally, before adding, "what are you doing here?"

Kate looked at him, wanting to be able to tell him the real reason why she was there. How the minute he told her he had agreed to do what his father was asking, she knew she was going with him, how she knew she had to be there for him, knowing how difficult this was gong to be for him, and hoping her presence could ease the load for him, slightly, to tell him how hard it was to say good bye to him, making him believe they would never see each other again. Instead, she casually said, "I got tired of Thailand. I needed a change of scenery."

"How did you manage to…" Jack asked, trailing off as she walked back over to the couch.

"Sawyer. He told me he knew someone in Sydney who could help me sneak in unnoticed, make sure I don't get caught," she answered, watching him join her on the couch, within an uncomfortable wide distance.

"That's what you two had talked about? Why didn't you tell me?" Jack asked, the jealousy that she had trusted Sawyer and not him evident in his voice.

"Jack… I didn't want to get you in trouble. Sawyer knows how these things work, he knows the wrong people in the right places," she said smiling, "I knew if I told you that I was coming, you'd have wanted to get involved, and you needed to be focused on the surgery, not about getting a felon across borders."

"Kate, you're not…" Jack started before she cut him off.

"I am, Jack," she said, a sad smile on her lips, "so, tell me. What have you been up to?"

"You know, the usual. Beach, surfing, girls," he said jokingly, earning an amused giggle from her, the giggle he thought he would never hear again, the one that danced beautifully across his skin and to his ears.

"I've been at the hospital mostly," he said with a smile, "we're doing tests and we should know within a few days if we are going to go ahead with the surgery or not."

"Are the hospital being cooperative?" she asked.

"Yeah, they're great actually. An old friend of mine is on staff here, and she's been really helpful," Jack explained.

"She?" Kate asked, trying to hide the jealous tone of her voice.

"Juliet Carlson," Jack said, "she's an OBGYN, and just happens to be my patient's daughter's doctor. Weird, huh?"

"Yeah, I suppose it is," Kate said, "so, what time are you going in tomorrow?"

"You wanna come with me?" Jack asked, shocked and equally excited.

"Of course I do," she said, realizing it would the only way to get to see him while she's here, and the best way to keep an eye on this Juliet woman, make sure that she's nothing more than a friend.

Jack's face lit up, he'd been worried he would be too busy a the hospital he would not get a chance to spend time with Kate, "At around eight," he said, "does that work with you?"

"Sounds great," Kate replied. She got up from the couch, "I'll see you bright and early, then," she said, before leaning down to give him a quick peck on the cheek before heading off to bed.

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We will learn more about Juliet's role in this, her "deal" with Christian later. And I know she is a fertility doctor, but here she is an OBGYN.

Next chapter: Kate hangs out at the hospital and gets to know Claire and Juliet better. Kate will not dislocate Juliet's shoulder. A decision regarding the surgery will be taken. And Sawyer leaves, so Jack and Kate will have the apartment to themselves!

Coming up in later chapters: Jack plays the piano again! Kate and Claire go on a ride. And water. Lots and lots of water! And more Losties show up! We know Boone and Shannon are in Sydney, but who is gonna be next to pop up?

Oh, and I know this note is now longer than the chapter itself, but I just wanted to let you know that chapter 11 is ready, so give me a truckload of reviews and you'll get an update very, very soon!


	11. Chapter 11

As I promised, a quick update! YAY! Keep up the awesome reviews and I'll keep up my end of the deal ;)

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**Chapter 11**

"Sawyer."

"Sawyer."

"SAWYER!"

"What? What?" Sawyer asked, jumping off the couch to be met by the disapproving glares of Jack and Kate.

"Your flight is in an hour. Get up!" Jack said as Kate threw a pillow at Sawyer, who begrudgingly pushing himself off the couch.

"What kind of sick joke is a cross Pacific flight at 7am?" he said, grumbling as he stood up.

"You were the one who booked it, weren't you? I told you to book the afternoon flight on a different airlines but you said, and I quote, the flight attendants on Oceanic are hotter," Jack said, laughing as they watched him walk into the bathroom.

"Sorry I woke you up," he said, turning to Kate.

They still had a lot of time before they had to get up to go to the hospital, but the task to wake up Sawyer had woken Kate up too.

"Don't worry about it, I've slept way too much anyway," she said with a smile on her face, as she took in the image of a "just woken up" Jack. His hair was slightly disheveled, His eyes still a bit puffy, and he was wearing a grey t-shirt and boxers. "What do you say we get some breakfast?" she asked, and smiled as he nodded his approval.

They got ready and left the apartment at around seven. They walked a few blocks to a coffee shop and had coffee and bagels. They walked casually to the hospital, enjoying their breakfast and each other's company.

When they arrived at the hospital, one of the doctors working with Jack on Carole's case told him that the chief had called for a meeting in half an hour. Jack was hoping he'd have a quieter morning that would allow him some time with Kate, but apparently that was not the case.

They walked to the cafeteria and bumped into Claire and Juliet.

"Hey," they said in unison, when they saw Jack, their attention immediately shifting to the woman by his side.

Jack noticed the two women were more preoccupied with Kate than actually saying good morning.

"Ladies, good morning," he said, "Juliet, Claire, this is Kate. She's a friend of mine. Kate, this is Juliet, she's a doctor here, and this is Claire, Carole's daughter."

The tree women shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.

"I have to go, I'll see you later," Juliet said to the group and walked off, but not before throwing Jack a suspicious look.

Jack turned to Kate, "I'm really sorry but I have to go. Are you sure you'll be ok?" he asked, the guilt evident on his face.

"Of course, don't worry about me," she said, laying her hand on his forearm, "you go work your magic," she winked at him, "we're still on for lunch though, right?"

"Definitely," he said smiling, before turning to say good bye to Claire and leaving to go to the meeting.

Kate places her coffee cup on one of the tables and sat down.

"Mind if I join you?"

Kate looked up to see Claire, carrying a muffin and a glass of orange juice standing next to her. Kate nodded, "Of course."

"Thanks, my shift does not start for another hour and I hate eating breakfast alone, especially in a hospital," Claire said as she sat down across the table from Kate.

"Shift? You work here?" Kate asked, apparently having picked up on just that piece of information.

"Yeah, the gift shop. I was in art school when mom and I had the accident… you know, that's how she.. you know… well, anyway, I was in school, but then all these things happened, and I had to drop one course after another, so I just gave it up for now. Maybe I'll go back after this guy decides to pop out," she said, patting her pregnant belly, all the time with a wide smile on her face.

Kate barely knew this girl but decided she already liked her. She had apparently been through a lot but she was still full of sunshine, as Kate's mother would have put it.

"So how do you know Jack?" Claire asked, and Kate realized it was not going to be hard making conversation with this young woman, who apparently was the chattiest person on the planet at eight in the morning. Kate had never been a morning person, so anyone who was fully functioning before ten and a large coffee was a miracle.

"We met in Thailand," Kate said, hoping she would not have to go into the details of that.

"Wow! Thailand! I would love to go there… I guess that's not an option with this little fella on the way," she said laughing.

"When are you due?" Kate asked, hoping to keep the focus of the conversation on Claire.

"A couple of weeks. Although Juliet thinks it could be sooner than that. I hope she's wrong though. I hope he can stay in there just until after mom's surgery," Claire said.

"So you think they surgery is going to happen, then?" Kate asked.

"Well, I hope so. The doctors here were scared at first, it is apparently very tricky. But ever since Jack came here, everyone has been so much more positive. He has this effect on them. He's great. My aunt's here today and they'll decide whether to do it or not in the meeting they are in now," Claire said excitedly, she obviously cared so much for her mother. Kate was more taken aback by how highly Claire spoke of Jack. She knew Jack was very worried about this, and it was a relief to know that he was surrounded by people who trusted him.

"You know, the doctors are saying my aunt is being stubborn about this, but it is not that. She just did not want my father to be the one who did the operation. But she does want mom to get better. She's her little sister after all," Claire said as she took a bite of her muffin.

"Excuse me?" Kate said, feeling her eyes popping out of her sockets.

Claire looked at her, confusion in her eyes as to what Kate was wondering about.

"Your father is a doctor here?" Kate asked.

"No… I've never met my father. Well, I had never met him until a few months ago. He had an affair with my mother all these years ago, and after I was born, he came back into her life for a short while, I think I was fourteen months when he disappeared completely. I do not remember him, except for that one family photo we have." Claire explained, sipping her juice before continuing her story, "my mom was a mess, she was so heartbroken. My aunt took us in, she took care of me when my mom was too depressed to do anything. She's very protective of us. So after the accident, apparently he showed up, my father, and started fighting with the chief of surgery here, that they should do something. But the doctors here thought the surgery was unnecessarily too dangerous. So he said that he would do it. My aunt found out what he was trying to do and they had this huge fight and she refused, warned him that he shouldn't even go near my mom, or me," Claire continued, taking a moment before she finished, "I had projects due that week, so I was staying with my friend in the dorms so I never saw him during that week. You know what's weird? I don't even know his name. My aunt has always wanted to protect me from being hurt by him, and my mother is too hurt to talk about him. So we never mention him at him, never did. And then, two weeks ago, my aunt told me the chief had contacted a young doctor from the US who had done a few similar surgeries and had succeeded, and that he was willing to study mom's case."

Kate sat there, staring in shock at Claire, unable to form any coherent words or thoughts, and luckily for her, Claire suddenly jumped off her chair, "oh crap! Look at the time. I gotta go. It was nice meeting you Kate," she said, waving to the still shocked Kate and rushing to the door.

"Are you ok?" Kate heard a voice next to her and she realized she had been staring blankly ahead of her, with her jaw dropped.

"Kate? Right?"

It was Juliet, who was now sitting in the place that Claire had just vacated.

Kate nodded, trying to lose the look on her face, the one that was still trying to comprehend the information that Claire had just casually thrown at her.

"I see you met Claire. She is a lovely young woman isn't she? A little too excited sometimes for her own good," Juliet said jokingly.

"How… How well do you know her?" Kate asked, clearing her throat a few times before the words came out clearly.

"Well, she's my patient, but we're a bit closer than just doctor/patient relationship. You could say… I'm doing her father a favor looking after her," Juliet explained plainly.

"How long have you known Jack?" Kate asked, her voice a bit accusatory.

Juliet looked at her oddly, not sure what to make of her tone, but still answered, "Since college."

"You knew him well then?" Kate asked, trying to make her questions sound casual but failing at that.

"We were best friends through college and med school," Juliet answered looking at Kate with a confused glare.

"So you know his family then? His father?" Kate asked, as she watched Juliet's face drop at the recognition.

"Jack father, Christian, he's Claire's father, right?" Kate asked, keeping her voice low.

"How do you…" Juliet stammered.

"I just had a twenty minute conversation with Claire and it is not hard putting two and two together. Do they know?" Kate said.

"No! An we need to keep it that way!" Juliet said.

"They have a right to know," Kate said between gritted teeth.

"Trust me. No one agrees with you on this as much as I do, but it is not our place." Juliet explained.

"Jack won't like it when he finds out and realizes we have kept it from him. Who else knows?" Jack said, imaging Jack's reaction when he finds out.

" Sawyer, me and Claire's aunt. And now you." Juliet said.

"How is it they have not come to the conclusion?" Kate asked.

"Because we have not given them the chance. I've made sure to be around every time they are together and made sure that no one brings up the topic of the dad," Juliet explained.

"Wow... what sort of evil mastermind is Jack's dad?" Kate laughed.

"You don't know the half of it," Juliet said.

"What's your role in this? What does Christian have you do?" Kate asked.

" Here's the thing. I found out a few months ago. When Christian came after Claire and Carole's accident. He had no idea I was here. He really loves them; I'll give him that. And when Carole's sister kicked him out, he came to me, asked me to keep an eye on his daughter; she basically had no one, and begged me never to tell Jack. It wasn't an issue since I had not seen or talked to Jack in years, so I said ok," Juliet said.

"But then Christian sent Jack here…" Kate said.

"Yeah… When Christian realized the doctors had given up hope, and that he had no chance of doing the surgery, he decided to send Jack. He gave me a call last week, told me what was going on, that he will be sending James... Sawyer to keep an eye on Jack, and asked to make sure Jack does not find out about Claire," Juliet said.

"But... why?" Kate asked in confusion.

"I guess he is worried Jack would refuse to do the surgery if he finds out," Juliet shrugged.

"That's bullshit. Jack would never... He's not... petty like that. He's bigger than that," Kate said, annoyed that anyone would think of Jack like that.

"I know... but Christian has this twisted view on his son and his motives. He doesn't get it. So I said ok. I care about the both of them too much to see them get hurt. So I am trying my best to make sure that does not happen. Sawyer on the other hand, is another handful. I have no idea who needs a baby sitter more," Kate said, and they both laughed, "Christian, however, did not warn me about you. You were a complete surprise"

"Yeah, I think I surprised him, too. You always need a variable in an equation. I think it will be fun messing with Christians' perfectly laid plans," Kate said wickedly.

The two women were laughing when Jack walked into the cafeteria, and for some reason he found that slightly unnerving.

"Hey," he said sheepishly.

"Jack!" the two said in shock.

"The meeting's over?" Juliet asked as he sat across from the two of them.

"Yeah. We're a go," he said happily.

"Really?" Juliet and Kate said together, their synchronization shocking all three.

"Yeah, Carole's sister was in there, she signed the paperwork right away. I don't understand why everyone was saying she was going to be hard to convince," Jack said.

Jack had the rest of the day off, as the preparations for the surgery would be starting the next day, and the surgery itself planned for the next week.

Jack and Kate spent the day walking around the city, not really paying attention to much except for the fact that they were enjoying each other's company. Jack noticed how Kate would tense up every time they saw a police officer. They were watching an old couple share an ice cream when two police officers walked next to them, and Kate gasped. Jack saw her face go pale as a sheet. He instinctively took her hand in his, wrapping it in his and squeezing gently. He turned his body slightly so that she was out of their view. He felt her breathing steady down and the color to return to her cheeks.

"Are you ok?" he asked when they had walked off.

"Yeah… I'm sorry," she said sheepishly.

"Don't be," he said, starting to walk in the opposite direction than the cops, keeping her hand in his. They walked the rest of the way back to the apartment hand in hand, neither willing to let go until it was absolutely necessary.

It was early evening when they reach the apartment building. They decided to spend the night in, grabbing a take away dinner on the way. They had their dinner and spent the rest of the evening watching TV, content to just sit together on the couch and have the evening to themselves.

Throughout the evening, Kate was debating the thought of telling Jack about Claire. She didn't owe Christian anything, unlike Juliet or Sawyer. While Jack, on the other hand, had his own dilemma haunting his thoughts. Ever since she had told him about her legal status, he had wanted to tell her he wanted to help, that maybe he actually could help. He knew opening such a topic at that moment would ruin the evening.

"Why don't you go to bed?" Jack asked when Kate yawned for the tenth time in less than that many minutes.

"No, no… this is good," she said sleepily, and lay down on the couch, her head dropping onto Jack's lap.

Jack felt his breath hitch, her warm, soft hair landing on his lap, her breath tickling against the skin of his thighs. She was asleep within seconds of lying down.

Soon he had forgotten what he was supposed to be watching and was mesmerized by the beautiful woman lying in his lap, sleeping peacefully. His fingers found her hair, soft, brown curls. He wrapped a tendril around his finger, reveling in the feeling of warmth, and the level of intimacy in this moment. He was planning on carrying her to her bed, but wanted to enjoy this moment a little longer. Before he knew it, he'd fallen asleep as well, with her in his lap, and his finger buried in her hair.

The early morning sun was flooding the room, the cool breeze dancing through the window when Jack opened his eyes. He realized that he'd fallen asleep and that Kate was still in his lap. He was scared of moving, worried that if she woke up and realized they'd spent the night like that, she'd pull away. He looked down at her and was surprised to see she was awake, looking at him with sleepy eyes and a lazy smile on her lips.

"Morning," she whispered.

"Morning," he said.

He felt himself leaning in, unable to fight the urge to kiss her, and to his surprise, she tilted her head and was rising to meet him halfway. He could feel her warm breath against his lips when his phone rang.

Kate dropped her head back onto Jack's lap, and Jack let out a disgruntled sigh. He reached for his phone and she got up, giving him a quick smile before disappearing into the bedroom.

_That was close, too close_, she thought to herself. As much as she felt attracted to Jack, she knew she should not let something like that happen, if not because he should be focused on the surgery, then because nothing could come out of it, not when she was still a wanted criminal and he was an international medical prodigy.

_They could only be friends, That was all they ever could be,_ Kate thought.

It was not until she walked into the bathroom and looked at the mirror that she realized she had tears falling down her cheeks.

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Won't say much, except, CHAPTER 12 IS GONNA BE AWESOME! XD

And I am not being ungrateful or anything, because I do appreciate each and every review and comment I get. I swear, they make my day, so keep them coming, and give me more! LOL!

Seriously though, thank you so so so so much, love you all!


	12. Piano Man

I'm scared I might have over-advertised this chapter and it is gonna turn out not as awesome as you think. Be nice LOL!

Oh and I decided to give titles to my chapters now /random

Oh, the interruptions… it's what makes the jate world go round.

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**Chapter 12: Piano Man**

The next few days saw Jack pulling long hours at the hospital. The surgery was approaching quickly and they had much still to prepare. Unfortunately, that meant the shifts kept Jack and Kate apart for most of that time, making it impossible for them to address the almost-kiss. Jack was leaving the apartment before Kate woke up and was coming back after she had gone to bed. When they did see each other, it was in the hospital cafeteria, while having lunch or breakfast with either Juliet or Claire or both.

It was two days before the surgery when Jack finally caught a break. He walked into the apartment with a pizza and drinks to find her still awake, for the first time in a week.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," she replied with a grin, "this is surprise."

He smiled, "yeah, I know. Dinner?"

"Mmmm… smells great," she said.

He set the pizza and drinks on the coffee table and walked towards the kitchen to grab two plates and glasses. He was heading back towards the TV room when he heard, "hey, Doc! Make those three plates. I'm famished!"

_Sawyer_, Jack grumbled, trying to fake a smile as he walked back out.

His eyes met Kate's who was looking at him disappointingly.

"You didn't think I was gonna let you have all the fun without me? Did you?" Sawyer said, grabbing a slice from the box, "I have a very important part to play in the surgery."

Kate and Jack both sighed, dropping dejectedly back onto their seats and nibbling half-heartedly at their dinner.

Kate walked into the hospital cafeteria at around noon, hoping to get to have lunch with Jack. It was the day before the operation and she could feel the buzz around the place. Everyone was talking about it. She was glad she was not in Jack's place. She knew if that had been her, she would have run to the door days ago. She asked one of the nurses and was told that Jack was busy for another few hours. She was on her way out when she bumped into Claire. The girl who was usually upbeat and happy was walking through the door with her head hanging low and a sad look on her face.

"Claire, are you ok?" Kate asked.

"Oh, hi Kate. I'm sorry I didn't see you," Claire replied.

"What's wrong?" Kate asked.

"It's nothing…" Claire said unconvincingly, "actually… I'm just scared. About tomorrow."

Kate tried to cheer Claire up, relieve her anxiety, tell her that everything will be alright. Somehow the two women ended up going shopping for baby clothes. It was something that Kate had never imagined herself to do, but somehow it turned out more fun than she'd expected. At some point, she actually caught herself "awwwing" over a pair tiny converse shoes and a formal tie and vest.

"So, have you thought of names?" Kate asked as they were browsing through an aisle of onesies.

"I have a few names that I love, but I have not decided yet," Claire said.

"What do you have in mind?" Kate asked.

"I like Charlie, Jacob, Matthew… I don't know, it's really confusing. I just hope I make my mind quickly or else I will start referring to him as turniphead and it will stick!" Claire laughed and Kate joined her.

"I actually also like Aaron a lot too," Claire added.

"Aaron… that's very pretty actually," Kate said.

The two women spent the rest of the afternoon together, and between shopping and having lunch and then shopping some more, Claire's mood seemed to have gotten better. Claire was driving Kate back home when she asked, "I know you said you two met in Thailand, but are you and Jack… you know… more than just friends?"

Kate gulped, choking slightly on the word but managing to let out a simple, "no, just friends."

"It's just that… ever since you came to Sydney he's been different. Don't get me wrong, he was great from the beginning, but he seemed slightly… detached… sort of… blank. But since you got back, he's been livelier, happier even," Claire said genuinely.

Kate giggled nervously, "I wish I had something to do with that, but Jack and I are only friends," she explained.

They had lost track of time at the mall, and when Kate arrived at the apartment, it was already dark. She walked into the apartment she was sharing with Jack and Sawyer and found Sawyer alone in the TV.

"Hey," She said.

"Freckles! There you are! I'd thought you'd gone and skipped town on us," Sawyer joked.

"Very funny," she said, playfully hitting his arm, "Jack's not back yet?" she said as she plumped down on the couch.

"No, he's back… I think he went down to the lobby, lounge thingy on the first floor," Sawyer said.

Kate sprang up to her feet, she had not seen him all day and suddenly realized how much she'd missed him.

"I'll se ya later," she said as she headed to the door.

"When are you two gonna get together so I can finally get my room back?" Sawyer called after her as she walked out of the apartment, amusing himself into a fit of laughter.

The lounge on the first floor was a space that rarely anyone used. It was a small room, with a few couches and a small piano in the corner. In the couple of weeks since she'd been there, she never saw anyone in there.

But as she exited the elevator, she was captured by the same haunting tune that night she met Jack. When she finally made it inside, she saw him. Jack, his shoulders hunched over, his brow knotted in concentration, and his hands dancing gracefully over the black and white keys.

She remembered how that music had pulled her the first time she heard it. How she felt it was calling to her, with its stunning mixture of loneliness and hope, the rhythm that emanated with every note calling to her, begging her to let it take her away, somewhere else, somewhere different.

She stood to his side, not sure if he'd seen her or not, but either way, he did not look up fro the keys in front of him.

And then suddenly, he stopped. Just when the melody had started to pick up, the melancholy wearing down and the hopefulness taking veer, he stopped. The tune was still hanging in the air waiting for closure, but he just left it there, as though he did not know how to play the rest of it. He smiled sadly, looking at the keys in front of him, before he lifted his head and looked at her.

"Why did you stop?" Kate asked, her voice coming out dryly.

"I don't know how it ends," he said simply.

"What is it? I don't think I've heard it before…" Kate asked.

"It's just something I wrote, I've been writing, my whole life, I think. I started when I was about ten," he said with a shy smile.

"Then how come you do not know how it ends?" Kate asked in confusion.

"I just don't," he said with a shrug, "I have never been able to finish it. It's always been stuck here. I get to this part but I don't know how to go on or to finish it."

"It's beautiful though," Kate said, moving closer to towards the piano.

"Yeah? You think so? No one else has ever heard it before…" Jack said.

Kate nodded, a smile on her lips, and she nudges his knee slightly with hers as she sat down next to him on the small bench.

"Will you play it again?" she asked.

He smiled, "for you? Absolutely."

She watched him play, her eyes shifting between his face, calm and at peace, and his fingers that moved gracefully across the keys. She let herself drown in the music as she also let herself drown in the image of this man, playing the beautiful music, pouring out his soul with every note as it reached for hers.

"Are you nervous? About tomorrow?" she asked once he'd stopped playing.

He nodded slightly, "a bit… yeah."

"Is it too risky?" she asked.

"Yeah, but every surgery is," he said, "I am just worried because I will be working with a new team. I mean, they're great, but it's different when you're in there with a team you've been working with for years as opposed to one you just met a few days ago."

"Do you always get nervous before a surgery?" she asked.

"yeah, I'm only human after all," he said with a giggle, giving her a playful wink.

Kate ducked her head, blushing slightly, "what do you usually do to prepare?"

"I take a shower, review the case over a hundred times, and then I sit at my piano and play until I forget everything else except for the music," he said, his finger trailing softly over the keys.

"Does it work?" Kate asked.

"Yeah… Do you play?" he said.

"Me?" she laughed, "no, I don't. Couldn't get me to sit till for that long," she said, touching the keys awkwardly under her finger.

"Come on, I'll teach you," he said, moving to put his hand over her hand that was on the piano, reaching over to take her other hand in his and laying it gently one the keyboard.

He started playing, moving her fingers under his. She stared at the fluid motion, the way his finger moved natural over the keys, and just as naturally the way her hands moved with his, her smaller hands drowning under his, and going with him wherever they take her. They sat there, alone in the dimly lit room, their hands moving together over the piano keys as the sweet music engulfed them.

When he stopped playing and kept his hands resting lightly over hers, she lifted her head to look up at him. She found her staring at her, the warmth in his eyes melting through her.

"You're right, it works," she said her voice barely a whisper.

She watched him, waiting for an answer, but he said nothing. Instead, he brought wrapped his right hand around his, bringing it into the small space between them, and just smiled, the sweetest, warmest smile she'd ever seen.

"I'm so glad you changed your mind," he finally spoke, "I'm so glad you're here."

Kate could feel her body grow warmer, she hoped her voice would not betray her when she opened her mouth to say, "me too."

If it were possible, she watched Jack's smile grow wider, warmer, as he brought his left hand up to her cheek, his fingers grazing softly against her heated skin, his thumb trailing against her jaw, the tip lightly brushing against her lower lips. His eyes fluttered between her lips and her eyes, as he slowly leaned in. She could feel herself losing control of everything around her, and for once she wanted to give in to it. So she leaned in as well, meeting him halfway, their noses brushing against each other once, before she felt his lips on hers. Soft and tender, gentle at first, their lips melded into one another.

And when she moaned, her lips parting on their own accord, he took advantage of it, deepening the kiss, devouring her mouth. Her free hand found its way to the back of his neck, pulling him closer to her, pouring more of her self into the kiss.

They finally pulled back, desperate for air, but just as desperate not to break their connection. Their foreheads rested against each other as they caught their breath. Both her hands had dropped, landing in his lap, while his were rubbing against her arms.

"We should go back upstairs," he finally said, placing a quick peck against her lips.

She just nodded, not trusting her voice. They made it back to their apartment, realizing immediately that was waiting for them behind the door, was a loud room mate, and reality, a reality that was different than the private, intimate time they just shared.

* * *

There we go! I hope it lived up to your expectations. I might not be updating as quickly as I was this week, but hopefully still frequently! You know the drill, review! Review! Review!


	13. WaterWater

Thanks for the reviews! Glad you guys enjoyed chapter 12!

I have no medical knowledge or experience. The last thing I remember is falling asleep in every Biology class in 11th grade and the teacher begging me to stay awake just once, so she can at least remember my face. So I'm just gonna go over Carole's surgery very briefly, and let's all pretend it makes sense ok? Less Carole more Jate I say, right?

* * *

**Chapter 13: Water+Water**

Kate sat in bed, her legs bent and pressed against her chest as she fought against the stubborn tears fighting their way to leave her eyes. She could not sleep, her thoughts coming at her violently. She looked at the clock next to her. 3 am.

She cared about Jack, a lot, that was something she could not deny, not if she tried to. And from the kiss they had just shared, she could assume that Jack cared about her too._ But what does it all mean? _she thought to herself. She knew nothing real could come out of it. She wondered how she could have let something like that happen. She had always been careful about getting too close to people, kept herself safely guarded, never let anyone close enough for long enough to feel anything. She berated herself for slipping this time, for dropping her walls around this man and allowing him to see her, to feel for her, and to feel in return. She felt bad, not just for herself, but for Jack. None of this was fair to him. She knew that any moment she could be on the run again.

When the tears finally came, she sobbed silently in bed until the tears and fatigue got the best of her, and she finally fell asleep at dawn, around the same time that Jack was getting up to leave for the hospital.

Kate woke up a little before noon, she lazily got out of bed, her tired body refusing to cooperate fully, and walked into the TV room.

"Welcome to the world of the living, Freckles," Sawyer said. He was sitting on the couch, tying his shoes, as it appeared he was getting ready to go to the hospital himself.

"Are you going to the hospital?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, aren't you?" Sawyer asked, getting up and reaching for his jacket.

"ummm… Yeah, I'll follow you in a while," she said with a small smile.

Sawyer was sitting in the waiting room, with Juliet, Claire, who was getting slightly nervous as the hours passed, and they heard nothing from the operating room. Claire's friends, Shannon and Boone were also there, as well as Claire's aunt. It had been two hours since Sawyer had arrived at the hospital when Kate called.

"Kate? Where are you?" he asked accusingly, "I can't be worried about you getting caught as well as everything else here," he whispered.

"I'm fine," she said quickly, "is it over?" she asked.

"No, a nurse came out to tell us it will at least a couple of more hours," Sawyer answered.

Kate breathed a sigh of relief. So Jack would still be in there, she thought to herself. She was not ready to see him just yet, but she had promised Claire she would be there for her.

Kate arrived at the hospital a half hour later, and to her surprise, Claire immediately left Shannon's side and ran to Kate. The young woman hugged Kate tightly, and swallowed a sob into Kate's shoulder.

"Is everything ok?" Kate asked, her tone terrified as to what could have happened.

"They're not telling us anything," Claire said, "I'm so scared, Kate."

"Oh, I'm sure everything is ok," Kate tried to calm her down, "Jack said it was going to be a long procedure. Don't worry your mom is in safe hands."

Kate was glad to see Claire calming down slightly, going back to take her seat next to her friend.

Kate joined the other five people in the waiting room, but soon found herself getting restless. This was more nerve racking than she thought it would be. She was not one to sit still for so long, especially when there was nothing anyone of them could do except to sit and wait.

"Juliet?" she asked, her voice hushed to make sure no one else heard, "How long do you think they're gonna be in there?"

"I know as much as you do, Kate," Juliet said, I tried to get more information earlier, but they give me nothing.

"Do you think everything is ok?" Kate asked nervously.

"Well, it is a very complicated procedure that usually takes very long hours," Juliet explained, "I'm sure everything's fine."

"I need to get out for a bit, get some fresh air; you think you can cover for me?" Kate asked jokingly.

Juliet nodded, and Kate got up, made up some lame excuse about how she needed to get something and will be back immediately.

It was early evening by the time Jack walked out of the OR. He was exhausted. They faced a number of complications during the procedure that they had not expected, but in the end, Carole pulled through. Her state was not yet completely stable, and she had to be watched over night to make sure her condition does not collapse again. A nurse had informed the family and friends waiting in the lounge, and Claire and her aunt were already with Carole when Jack walked out. He walked into the lounge and was met by Juliet and Sawyer.

Juliet grilled Jack for details, but backed off when she realized he was too tired to go over that then.

"Come on, I'm buying the first round of drinks," Sawyer said, slapping Jack on the back.

"Where's Kate?" Jack finally asked, hoping that she'd been there.

"She was here, left some time ago to get some air," Juliet said, not going into the details that Kate had actually left hours ago and never came back, as she saw the disappointment in Jack's eyes.

The three went to a bar close to the hospital, and after the first round of drinks, Jack excused himself. He needed to get back home, shower and go to sleep. Juliet tried to convince him to stay, but in the end, it was just her and Sawyer, and both seemed ok with that.

Jack walked into the apartment hoping he would find Kate there. When he didn't find her in the TV room, he gently knocked on her bedroom door. He didn't get an answer, so he gently opened the door. He found her lying in bed fast asleep.

When he got up he next morning, Jack walked out to the TV room to find Sawyer still fast asleep on the couch and the door to Kate's room still shut. He stalled around the kitchen for a while. He was not due to go to the hospital for another few hours, but he got the dreaded phone call earlier than that.

Carole was stable for now, but had had a minor set back in the morning. Begrudgingly, Jack got dressed and left for the hospital.

At around noon, Kate heard a soft knock at the door of the apartment, she looked at Sawyer but he just cocked his eyebrow and went back to his book.

"No, really, don't get up, I'll get it," she said sarcastically.

"Claire?" she asked when she opened the door to be met by the young woman, "Is everything ok? Jack's not here… he's at the hospital."

"Yeah, I know. I was just there. He ordered me to leave because I was hovering and panicking," she laughed, Shannon and Boone are downstairs, we're gonna go for a drive, wanna come along?"

"I don't know…" Kate mumbled.

"Oh for God's sake Freckles please go! You're mood is killing me!" Sawyer interfered and literally pushed her out of the door, almost causing the two women to stumble.

They drove for a few hours, leaving the city and ending up on a beach. Shannon and Claire were lying down, sunbathing, with Boone in the shade on his phone and Kate standing on the edge of the water when Claire gasped loudly, "Oh my God!"

The other three were immediately by her side, asking what had happened, and she just stared, eyes widened and jaw dropped.

"My water just broke."

"Oh my God! What do we do? What do we do? Boone, do something!" Shannon shrieked, grabbing her brother by his shirt collar.

"Do what? I'm a life guard, not a doctor!" he said, coming to sit next to Claire and taking her hand in his, trying to help the hysterical woman relax.

"Give me your phone," Kate instructed Claire, her voice calmer than she felt.

She knew the rational thing to do would be calling Juliet, but for some reason she found herself dialing Jack's number.

"Should she push?" Shannon asked, her panic worse than the woman in labor.

"No, no! not yet! Kate said, listening to the phone ring for the fifth time.

She was ready to hang up, dial Juliet's number when she heard his voice.

"Claire?" he asked.

"No, Jack it's Kate," Kate said quickly.

"Kate? What are you doing… Is Claire ok?" he asked worriedly.

"Jack, she's in labor," Kate spoke into the phone, her voice finally giving in and trembling slightly.

"Ok, you need to bring her in, do you need me to send an ambulance?" Jack asked, walking hurriedly to Juliet's office.

"We don't… we're not in Sydney, we went for a drive," Kate said.

"Are you two alone?" Jack asked as he reached Juliet's office, barging in.

"Shannon and Boone are here," Kate explained.

"Ok, one of you has to start timing the contractions, and Kate, you have to see how much she's dilated, "we're on our way."

Kate panicked, fearing he was going to hang up on her, "Jack, don't go."

"I'm not going anywhere," Jack spoke soothingly, "explain to me where you guys are."

Jack spoke alternately with Juliet and Kate. He briefed Juliet on the situation and tried to keep Kate on the other end.

Once they were in the car, Juliet started giving him instructions that he related to Kate.

"Don't let her push just yet, wait till her contractions are ninety seconds apart," he said.

"No! No! Jack she cannot start pushing until you come here! I can't do this," Kate cried on the other end.

"Yes you can, Kate. I know you can," he spoke softly, "we're trying to get there as fast as we can, but if we don't make it in time, it is going to have to be you, ok? Don't worry; I'll be with you all the time. I know you can do this."

Kate swallowed hard, Claire had managed to calm down slightly, Boone being surprisingly good at the task, and comforted by the information that Juliet and Jack were on the way. Kate did not tell her that they were still far, and that she might have to be the one to deliver the child.

Kate took a deep breath, listening to Jack's instructions, and delegated the task as he told her, "Shannon, I need you to go to the car, try to find a towel, or a piece of cloth, and a bottle of water," she said, "Boone, how far apart?"

"Three minutes," Boone mouthed quietly.

A few minutes later, Jack heard Kate say, "Jack, where are you?"

"We're still about twenty minutes out," Jack said.

"They're ninety seconds," Kate said, trying to maintain the calm.

"Kate, it's time," Jack said.

When he did not hear her reply, he spoke again, "Kate, are you still with me?"

"Yea," she said, her voice trembling, "I'm scared, I don't… I can't."

"I know you are," Jack said, "but you know, fear's sort of an odd thing. When I was in residency my first solo procedure was a spinal surgery on a 16 year old kid, a girl. And at the end, after 13 hours, I was closing her up and I, I accidentally ripped her dural sac, shredded the base of the spine where all the nerves come together, membrane as thin as tissue. And so it ripped open and the nerves just spilled out of her like angel hair pasta, spinal fluid flowing out of her and I: and the terror was just so crazy. So real. And I knew I had to deal with it. So I just made a choice. I'd let the fear in, let it take over, let it do its thing, but only for 5 seconds, that's all I was going to give it. So I started to count, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Then it was gone. I went back to work, sewed her up and she was fine."

Jack waited apprehensively for a moment before he heard a gently voice on the other end, "one… two… three…" she whispered, "four… five…" they finished together.

Kate put the phone on speaker and set it in the sand next to her, "Ok, Claire, honey, you're gonna have to push now."

"What? No! Juliet isn't here yet," Claire panicked, "I'm not doing this until she comes," Claire said trying to shut her legs.

"Claire, you're gonna have to do this now, I'm so sorry," Kate said gently, "I know you're terrified, so am I, but we're going to have to trust each other and help each other out ok?"

Claire stared in fear, shaking her head gently.

"Listen, Juliet's on the phone, she's gonna walk us both through it," Kate said.

"Claire, sweetie," Juliet spoke through the phone, "you don't have a thing to worry about. Kate knows what she's doing, and Jack and I are going to make sure she gets everything right. Shannon and Boone are also there to help. Everything is going to be just perfectly fine," Juliet said, her voice full of courage and comfort that no one truly felt.

Claire nodded her head slightly and eased her legs apart.

"On my count," Kate said, taking a deep breath, "one, two, three, PUSH!"

…

"You did great," she heard him say as he walked up to her.

Jack and Juliet had arrived a few moments after the baby was born, immediately taking over from Kate.

Kate was now standing at the edge of the water again, staring out at the vast blue ocean, trying to catch her breath.

She turned to meet Jack's eyes, "I have never been more scared in my life. I just wanted to get up and run," she said.

"But you didn't," he said with a smile.

She shook her head and smiled, "I could not have done it without you."

He came to stand next to her, and she saw him staring at her feet, ankles deep in wet sad, her shoes discarded next to her.

"I'm sinking," she said simply.

"Trying to find another way to get away from me?" he said teasingly, but the tone of sadness evident.

"Jack, I…" she mumbled, dropping her head to avoid his piercing gaze.

"Kate, you've been avoiding me since we…" he cut in.

He looked at her, waiting for a response, but she bit her lip, swiping quickly at the tears waiting to be shed.

"It's ok, you don't need to say anything, we can just pretend it never happened," he said with a sad smile and turned to leave.

"Jack, wait," Kate said.

Jack turned, looking at her expectantly.

"I don't want us to pretend it never happened…But I also cannot pretend that this… that we can…" she said, going silent for a moment, pulling back tears, "Jack, I'm a fugitive," she said "ome day, I am going to get caught. I cannot keep on running forever. And then what? I'll be in jail for the rest of my life. You don't deserve that."

"You don't have to go to prison. You don't have to get caught.," Jack said.

"So, we go on the run together? That's even more ridiculous, Jack," she said, wiping at the tears that finally escaped.

Jack smiled sweetly, "that's not what I meant... Kate, you told me you're innocent, was that the truth?"

"Yes, of course it was," she nodded.

"Well, then, we'll just have to find a way to prove your innocence in court if you ever get caught," Jack explained confidently.

Kate smiled, not really believing that would ever happen, but appreciating his support, "and in the mean time?"

"I'd like us to stay friends, get to know each other, spend time together. It doesn't need to be anything more, Kate," Jack said.

"Ok," Kate nodded, "I'd like that too."

* * *

This was by far the hardest chapter I have had to write so far. It just would not come together like I wanted it to. It felt forced and choppy and incoherent… *shrugs*

Next Up:

Chapter 14 All The Best Cowboys and Cowgirls Have Daddy Issues!


	14. ATBCCHDI

I am so sorry for the delay in the update. For your patience, you get an extra long chapter this time!

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**Chapter 14**: All the Best Cowboys and Cowgirls Have Daddy Issues

"Hey, Sawyer?" Jack said as he walked out of the kitchen, carrying a plate with two halves of a sandwich sitting on it, "not that I mind having you around, honestly, I find your wit mesmerizing and your presence a blessing, but how much longer would you say you're staying here?"

Sawyer threw Jack a disapproving look from the other end of the TV room, smirking evilly as he prepared his comeback.

A storm had overtaken the city, and the three of them had decided to avoid it and stay at home that day. It had been a week since Carole's operation, since Aaron's birth and no one had brought up the thought that there was no need for anyone to still be in Sydney.

Kate knew Jack was stalling. He told her he needed to stay to keep an eye on Carole's situation. However, she knew he had an ulterior motive, one that she did not mind all that much. He did go to the hospital, an hour or two a day, but they mostly hung around together. It was nice, getting to know each other as friends would do; favorite food, favorite color, pet peeves, habits, hobbies… what was not nice though was having a chaperone follow them every where.

As Kate grew closer to Claire, it meant she spent more time with her. Since Jack was spending most of his time with Kate, that in turn meant he was spending time with Claire, which meant that Sawyer's job, which included preventing Jack and Claire from finding out about them sharing a father, was still not over.

As a result, the situation at had was the following. Kate was safe for the time being in Sydney, so she had no plans to leave. Jack wanted to spend time with Kate and had without her knowing called his hospital in LA and extended his sabbatical and had no plans on leaving either. Finally, Sawyer who was still on Christian's paycheck, had to keep an eye on Jack and in turn had no intention on leaving either.

"Yeah, Sawyer? When are you going back home?" Kate chimed in, walking out of the bedroom and dropping on the couch next to Jack and grabbing her half off his plate.

"Look at the two of you…" Sawyer shook his head, "I'm hurt. You know that? Truly hurt. After all I have done for you two," he reprimanded them, "and you cannot wait to kick me out to the curb."

He turned his head dramatically, looking towards the television, pouting miserably.

"What on earth is he talking about?" Jack asked.

Kate took another bite of her sandwich and mumbled, "I dunno…"

Sawyer grumbled jokingly and threw a pillow at them, missing the plate by a few centimeters.

The issue was immediately dropped and they went back to watching the movie they'd rented.

"Alright, I guess it's time we call it a night," Sawyer said, yawning and stretching out of his seat as the credits rolled on the screen.

He grabbed his pillow and blanket and walked towards the couch, his bed for the past month, waiting for Jack and Kate to get up.

Instead, they just looked up at him blankly.

"Sawyer, it's ten thirty," Kate said with a laugh.

"What can I say, I'm still jet-lagged," Sawyer answered, starting to poke Jack's leg with his foot to get him to move.

"You've been here a month," Jack said, swatting the annoying foot away.

"I need my beauty sleep," Sawyer nagged.

Jack and Kate both burst out in laughter, "why don't you take my room?" Kate asked.

"Your room? YOUR ROOM? Excuse me! Shall I remind you whose room that is? Shall I remind you who was chivalrous enough the first day you came here and gave up his room for you? Was it your hotshot boyfriend? No. It was the silent side kick, who you want to pay back by shipping back home," Sawyer huffed, walking off dramatically towards the bedroom.

"Don't forget! We're going to Claire's tomorrow!" Kate called after him.

A couple of hours later, Jack turned off the tv and turned to Kate who was slowly falling asleep by his side.

"Hey," he said, gently shaking her arm to wake her up, "why don't you take my bed, I'll take the couch."

"No, no…" she mumbled lazily, "I'll take the couch."

"Don't be silly, I'll take the couch," Jack answered back.

"Sawyer's chivalry comment got you, huh?" Kate teased, "I'm serious though, I'll take the couch."

"Kate, come on, this isn't about Sawyer's comment," Jack said, "I want you to take the bed though."

"Why don't we both sleep on the bed?" Kate asked innocently.

Jack's jaw dropped, his mouth going dry and his breath choking in his throat, "uhhhhmmm," was all that left his lips.

Kate giggled, "not like that," she said swatting his arm playfully, "you don't thing two adults can share a bed and just sleep in it, without anything happening?"

Sleeping in the same bed with you is not like just sleeping in bed with anyone else, Jack thought, but he just nodded, forcing an innocent smile on his face, and mustered out a "sure," as nonchalantly as he could.

Kate excused herself to go change in the bathroom while Jack rushed back into the room, trying to make sure it is neat enough, without nothing embarrassing lying around. He felt like a foolish teenage boy trying to impress the girl he had a crush on.

He straightened back up, laughing at his own behavior and moved to remove the covers off the bed. Kate walked into the bedroom, wearing a t-shirt and pair of short shorts. Jack swallowed hard at the sight of her long legs, trying to hide it with a cough and asked, "right side or left?"

"Left, unless that's where you sleep," she answered.

"Nope, I'm on the right," he said with a smile.

"Perfect match," she winked casually moving around to her side.

She climbed into bed, pulling the covers over her body and smiling at him, still standing, frozen in his place by the side of the bed, "'night."

Jack watched her for a moment as she drifted to sleep and stood there, wondering he should just go to bed in his jeans and t-shirt or whether he should wear what he usually did, a pair of boxers.

Just the mere thought of Kate's bare legs brushing against his during the night sent another lump through his throat and he swallowed hard. Jeans would be safer, he thought. But what would she think if she woke up and saw him wearing jeans to bed?

Jack mentally kicked himself. He was driving himself insane with all the ideas that were flooding his mind. It was her idea after all. It was not like he had never spent a night in bed with a woman where sex was not an issue. The last couple of months of his marriage were nothing but sharing a bed with a woman and never thinking of sex. He could do this. All he needed to do was imagine it was Sarah in bed and not Kate.

He finally got over his own anxiety, stripping down to his underwear and joining her in the bed. He lay still on his back, begging himself to go to sleep but the distractions were too many. Her thigh was centimeters away from his, her breath close enough for him to follow its steady rhythm as the warmth his neck, her hair was splayed all over the pillow, a few stray tendrils reaching over and tickling his skin.

"Good morning," Kate said as she walked into the kitchen the next morning.

"Morning," Jack said, "sleep well?"

"Perfect," she answered, "you?"

"Never better," Jack lied, having gotten a total of two hours sleep in the end, opting to watch her the rest of the night, "what time is Claire expecting us?"

"I don't know… eleven maybe?" Kate said, shrugging her shoulders and reaching over to grab the coffee mug he'd just poured her.

Claire who had finally managed to settle back in and get into a rhythm with Aaron, had invited the newly formed group of friends over to officially meet Aaron.

…..

Juliet, Kate, Shannon and Claire were in the living room, fussing and cooing and playing with Aaron while the three men, Jack, Sawyer and Boone, had been tasked to put together the crib in the baby's room.

"I thought this was gonna be a party of sorts," Sawyer mumbled, "if you'd told me it involved actual work I'd have made up a reason to be busy."

"I think there's something wrong with these instructions," Boone complained, turning the paper sideways, trying to make sense of the pictures explaining how to assemble the piece of furniture, "we need six of these curvy thingies and we only have four…"

"Do you think the guys are ok?" Kate asked, peering over Claire's shoulder to see that the situation in the baby's room was the exact same way it was when the men went in over an hour ago.

"I'm sure they're fine," Juliet said, "they're the ones who said it's a man's job and made us leave the room."

Kate decided to check on them either way. "Are you guys ok?" she asked walking into the room.

"Yeah, we're fine," Jack said.

"Need any help?" she asked.

"Actually, can you ask Claire if she has another screw driver?" Jack said.

Kate walked back out to the living room and asked the young mother who was lifting Aaron up.

"I think there's one in the desk in the study, do you mind checking? The little fella needs changing," Claire replied.

Kate walked into the room Claire had pointed to and opened the desk drawer, shifting through the junk in there looking for a screw driver.

"Find anything?" she heard Jack ask as he walked into the room.

"I'm trying," Kate said.

Jack walked over, opening the drawer on the other side to help her find one.

They were quiet for a moment, going through the drawers at either end, until Kate heard Jack, "what the hell is this?"

"Jack?" Kate turned to see him staring wide eyed at a picture he'd pulled out of the drawer.

"Son of a bitch," was al Jack could say, his jaw clenching and his brow knotting tightly.

Kate knew that could only mean one thing. She walked slowly towards him, standing next to him and looking at the picture in his hand.

"He's her father," Jack said between clenched teeth, studying the picture of a younger Christian standing next to Carole and carrying a blonde little one year old girl.

"No… Jack, that picture could mean anything," Kate flustered.

"Kate," Jack spoke sternly, "I know these pictures. My father loved taking them. The perfect family portrait of his perfect little family. He used to make us pose for one every year so that he'd place it proudly on his perfect surgeon's perfect desk."

"It was all a lie," Jack whispered, "and I just let him use me."

"Jack," Kate whispered softly, her hand coming up to rest on his arm, trying to get him to loosen up a bit, seeing the stress and tension take over his every muscle.

"Claire's my sister," he said, softer this time, as the realization dawned on him, "do you think she knows?"

"No… she doesn't," Kate admitted.

"How can you be so…" Jack said turning to her, looking at her for the first time, "wait… you know?" he asked seeing the calm certainty in her face as she replied.

"Jack…I…" Kate flustered, knowing how keeping this from was hurting him unintentionally on her part.

"You didn't tell me… Why didn't you tell me?" he said, recoiling away from her.

"I wanted to, I really did… but I couldn't. It wasn't my place…" she said, dropping her gaze to avoid the hurt look in his eyes.

"Who else knows?" Jack asked.

"Sawyer and Juliet," Kate said.

"Great," Jack huffed, "so everyone knows except me. You've all just been lying to me the whole time?"

"It's not like that, Jack…" Kate started but was interrupted by Sawyer storming into the room, "what the hell is taking you so long Doc?" he asked walking in, to be stopped in his tracks by the angry glare that Jack was shooting him.

"What's going on?" Sawyer asked, looking back and forth between Kate and Jack.

"He knows, Sawyer," Kate said.

"Knows what?" Sawyer asked.

Sawyer's question was answered by Jack shoving the photograph into his chest, and mumbling, "this," under his breath, as he started pacing the room, running his palm over his hair.

"Shit," Sawyer said, turning around and calling to Juliet.

"What are we gonna do?" Juliet said after they managed to calm Jack down a bit, the four of them hiding in the study.

"I need to tell her," Jack said, "she needs to know."

"Jack, you don't need to do this now," Juliet said.

"No, I do need to. She is my sister, and she deserves to know. I'm done having him dictate my life for me," Jack said and marched out of the room.

"There you are," Claire said as the three walked out the study, "I was starting to get worried."

"Claire, can we talk?" Jack asked dryly.

Claire looked at him, confused at his tone, and nodded, "of course."

"Why don't you give me Aaron?" Kate asked, taking the child form his mother's arms, "it's going to be okay," she whispered to Jack as she walked next to him.

Jack led Claire to the small balcony of her apartment, and the others watched from the inside as he pulled the picture from his pocket and showed it to Claire. She was taken back at first, seeming like she was accusing him of going through her personal stuff. But Jack remained calm, talking gently to her as he explained the situation, while in the living room, Sawyer was spilling the beans to Shannon and Boone.

"Do you think they're going to be ok?" Kate asked Juliet, who was watching the scene unfold with her.

"Yeah, I think they will… Christian might die of a heart attack, though," Juliet laughed.

They watched apprehensively as Jack and Claire walked back into the room, both obviously had tears in their eyes, but everything else seemed ok. Claire walked towards Kate and took Aaron from her, turning back to Jack.

"There's some one I want you to meet," she said sweetly, "Aaron, this is your uncle Jack."

"What now?" Kate asked when everyone had settled back down.

"I need to talk to him," Jack said reaching into his pocket for his phone.

"Are. You. In. Sane." Sawyer said mockingly, "first off, it is like the middle of the night in LA. Plus, you always knew your father was a scumbag, what changed now? A phone call from across the ocean will only make it worse, and you will go back to being your usual cranky self."

Jack shook his head, "I have to, Sawyer…"

"I have a better idea…" Juliet said and seven sets of eyes turned to look at her. "Let's have some fun with this. You're dad's a jerk who has made life hell for almost everyone in this room at some point or another, right?"

Everyone nodded their heads, including Shannon and Boone, causing a few eyebrows to rise.

"So, why don't we make his life hell for once?" Juliet said and proceeded to explain her idea.

"I don't think I have ever been more turned on," Sawyer said when she finished explaining, and sat back in her seat with a wide smile on her face.

"I'm in," Jack said and was immediately joined by Claire, and so the plan was set into action.

The first step of the plan, was Jack sending Christian a simple text message,

_Hi Dad. All is fine here. Need to keep any eye on Carole for a few more days. Might spend some time here. Met someone. Nothing serious yet, but it looks promising. You might know her. Carole's daughter._

Jack pressed the "send" button, and they all sat back, waiting for the reaction. They were not expecting anything to happen immediately, given the time difference. But less than five minutes later, Juliet's phone rang. She looked at the called id and smirked evilly, "let the fun begin." She said and motioned for everyone to be quiet as she answered the phone.

They could only hear her side of the conversation, and the shrieking from Christian's end,

"No, I didn't know… Well I have other patients you know… I cannot keep an eye on your children all the time… What about the guy you are paying? Isn't that supposed to be his job?"

And with Juliet hung up her phone and looked at Sawyer, "five, four, three, two…" and his phone rang before she even reached one.

"What do you want me to do?... Listen, I tried my best, but I cannot glue myself to your son all the time… A guy's got needs… What do you want me to do?... Come between them?... Should I hit on Claire?... Easy man, I wasn't going to actually do anything to your daughter, it was your idea… You want me to convince Kate to seduce Jack?... Sorry, that won't work… Kate plays for the other team…" he winked at Kate and she threw an annoyed glare at him for his teasing, "Juliet won't do the job either… she plays for Kate's team…"

The others were barely trying to keep their lughs contained at this point, they could imagine the look on Christian face, probably even getting into his car to get to the airport and deal with the issue himself, "easy, easy old man, don't give yourself a heart attack. Here talk to your some for yourself, I am done cleaning up your mess," he finally said, tossing the phone to Jack.

"Hello, Dad," Jack said sternly, as he walked out of the room.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it! Again I am really sorry for the delay. I'll try to make sure it won't happen again.

Next Chapter: Double Date Night


	15. Double Date Night

I don't say this as often as I should, but THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for all the reviews. You guys are seriously the best there ever could be. Love you all!

And another thing I don't say often is that I am sorry for all the typos and grammatical errors that are there all the time. It is simple, I suck at proofreading :/

* * *

**Chapter 15: Double Date Night**

"Hello, stranger," Kate joked watching him walk through the front door of the apartment.

"Hey," he said back, beaming at her with a smile that stretched his face.

"How are Claire and Aaron?"" she asked him.

Ever since they found out the truth, and managed to convince Christian not to come to Sydney, Jack and Claire have spent almost every day together, getting to know each other as siblings, learning about each other's past. Claire had a lot of questions about their father, naturally, and Jack tried to gloss over his faults as best he could.

"They're great," Jack said, feeling slightly guilty for ignoring Kate all that time, "they said hi."

Jack moved around the couch and sat next to her, "I'm sorry I haven't had time for… you know, us… to hang out," he said, flustering over the words.

"Hey, it's ok," she said, her hand tapping him on the leg and staying there, "it's not every day one finds out they have a sister, and a nephew."

"I'm all yours for the rest of the day, though," Jack said, "Claire and Aaron have an appointment with his doctor. What do you say we go out to a movie and dinner?"

"Sounds great," Kate smiled, "Sawyer should be back in a bit, I'll get ready and we'll…" she started before Jack interrupted her.

"no, not with Sawyer…" Jack said shyly, "just the two of us."

Kate blushed, "like… a date?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

"If you want it to be a date, it can be," Jack said, "or it could just be two friends having dinner…"

"Ok…" Kate said slowly.

"Ok, it's a date…. Or ok, it is just dinner between friends?" Jack asked nervously.

Kate smiled, her eyes glinting, "I'm going to have to find something to wear," she said and hopped off the couch, grabbing the phone on her way.

Kate disappeared into the bedroom, leaving a slightly confused, yet highly excited, Jack in the living room on his own. Twenty minutes later, a loud banging noise snapped him back from his daydreams, and he hurried to the door.

"Claire? Shannon?" he asked, seeing the two young women, at the door, carrying a range of different sized bags and between them somehow, Aaron seemed nestled comfortably, "what's…."

"Out of the way, this is an emergency!" they both spoke quickly and shoved past him, somehow managing to plant Aaron in his arms.

Kate came rushing out of the bedroom, "Claire? What the… I just asked if I can borrow some make up!" Kate said seeing the number of bags that Claire and Shannon were carrying.

"pffft!" Claire huffed, pushing Kate into the bedroom and shutting the door behind them.

"Kate, you're going out with Jack. JACK. You're not gonna do that wearing a t-shirt and jeans, and slapping on some eye liner and lip gloss," Claire ordered, pushing her to sit on the bed, "you are going to do this right!"

Kate fell down on the bed, flabbergasted and slightly confused. She had indeed planned to do just that. She knew a date with Jack was a big deal, but she didn't know it needed all this cavalry to prepare for it.

Claire and Shannon starting going through the contents of the bags, which included, a wardrobe of dresses, a never ending supply of make up and jewelry and an array of creams and lotions Kate had no idea what they did.

Luckily for Jack, it was Aaron's naptime, so he did not have to do much watching over his nephew. He was, on the other hand, worried about what was going on behind that closed door. He had heard from them once, when Shannon came out to get some drinks.

It was almost an hour later when Claire and Shannon walked out, both grinning proudly.

"Hello, big brother," Claire said, "are you ready?"

"Ready for what?" Jack asked anxiously.

Shannon and Claire looked at each other shook their heads, "men…"

Claire moved out of the way and called for Kate to walk out.

Jack knew she was beautiful, it was one of the very first things he noticed about her, but the sight that he was looking at at that moment, was not just beautiful, it was breathtaking.

Kate was wearing a knee length dress that stopped slightly above her knees; at it belonged to the shorter Claire. It was a dark shade of green, matching her eyes perfectly. Her hair was pulled back in a loose bun, allowing a few tendrils to fall loosely over her face, attempting to hide the red blush in her cheeks.

Jack's throat was dry and he knew his mouth had fell open, but he did not have the strength to close it, and had somehow lost all capacity to form coherent thoughts.

Kate smiled shyly, biting her lip, "Jack…?" she asked timidly.

Her voice snapped him out, "yes?" he said blinking twice before collecting himself, ignoring the high five that Shannon and Claire shared.

"You… wow," he stumbled, "I mean, you look… wow," he breathed out.

Sawyer sat flipping through the channels waiting for the game to begin. He had come home to an empty apartment and secretly celebrated not having to watch the big game with either one of them. Having the place for himself, free to yell and shot at the TV as he pleased was a nice break from sharing it with Jack and Kate and their annoying sexual tension.

The phone rang and he swore, if it was either one of them, he might just need to resort to lying and coming up with something to keep them out.

"What?" he barked into the phone.

"Well, isn't that a sweet way to answer the phone?" came Juliet's voice teasing from the others.

"Oh, it's you," he deadpanned.

"Again, I am amazed you ever get women to go out with you," Juliet said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, hello ma'am, how may I help you tonight," Sawyer said mockingly.

"I was wondering if you guys are watching the game tonight? I hate watching basketball alone, and thought I'd drop by," Juliet said.

"Depends on who you're with," Sawyer said.

"I just want the Lakers to lose," Juliet laughed.

"Well, then, by all means, please do come over," Sawyer announced, "but it's just me and you, tonight, Blondie. Romeo and Juliet are out."

"Fine by me," Juliet said, "should I bring us dinner?"

"Nope, I got that covered," Sawyer said, "just get your Lakers hating self over and let's get this started."

Jack could not keep his eyes off Kate during dinner. He felt silly losing track of what he was talking about and getting caught staring while she was talking to him, but truth was, she was breathtaking. He scolded himself for mumbling like an idiot when she first walked out of the bedroom, but this woman was tugging at his heart in ways not other had before. And while he had agreed to take things slow, watching her so beautiful and radiant tonight, was making it harder and harder to reign in his feelings.

Kate shifted in her seat. She did not know what was making her so self-conscious. She had spent most of every single day of the past five or six week with Jack, she had shared a bed with him, but for some reason, there was something about being on a real date with him, that was making her shy, self conscious and wary of every move she made and every word she said. There was something about the way he was looking at her, as though she were the only person in the room, the way his eyes never left hers, that was causing her breath to choke in her throat.

"Are you ok?" Jack asked as they stepped out of the restaurant into the chilly evening wind.

"Yes, perfect," she said with a smile.

"You're not cold?" he asked.

"Just a little bit," she answered, "I'm fine."

"You're okay with us walking back? Or do you want to take a cab?" He asked.

"Walking would be great," she said, stepping closer next to him, trying to take from his warmth.

Meanwhile, back at the apartment, the game had taken a new meaning for Juliet and Sawyer.

"Are you sure turning this into a drinking game was a smart idea?" Juliet said, falling onto the couch, her elbow knocking into Sawyer's ribs painfully.

"Well, it was your idea to begin with, smarty-pants," he replied, nudging her off him.

"Well, you're the one who said every time Kobe sinks a three we sink three, I remember that clearly," she laughed, trying to get up but falling back down onto him.

He did not bother pushing her off this time, instead pulling his arm from under her and casually draping it over her shoulder.

"Do you have any idea who won?" he asked with a laugh as he turned to the TV to find the game was no longer on.

"Who won what?" Juliet asked, falling into a fit of giggles, burying her face in his chest.

"Come on, Blondie, time to get you to bed," Sawyer said, lifting her gently off of him.

"No, I need to go home," she muttered.

"Yeah… you're going no where in this state," he said, laughing as she fell against him again.

"I'm not sleepy," she whined, "let's just see what's on tv?" she asked with a pout.

Sawyer relented, letting her fall against him again and grabbing the remote control to switch the channels.

Kate pulled Jack's jacket closer against her body. He'd given it to her when he felt her shiver against him. She wasn't that cold though, but the feeling of being wrapped in his warmth, surrounded by his smell was intoxicating. At some point during their walk back, he's taken her hand in his, and she had gladly allowed that to happen without hesitation.

"By the way, I am thinking of getting a job," she said casually, "nothing big, just something that will help me stay on my feet while I'm here."

He smiled at her, waiting for her to give him more information rather than pry in the issue.

"I've called a few places, and I have an interview in two days. Well, not Kate Austen, but Lucy Michaels does. I thought it was safer…" she trailed.

She felt him stop, pulling her to a stop as well, forcing her to turn back, "what?" she asked, confused.

"You don't have to do this, Kate," he said seriously.

"Don't have to do what?" she asked.

"Keep on running, hiding…" he spoke softly, "there is another choice."

Kate clenched her jaw. She did not want to talk about this. "Yes, I do Jack. There is no other choice," she deadpanned, pulling her hand out of his grasp and walking off.

"Hey," Jack said, walking up to her and grabbing her wrist, not roughly, but firm enough to let her know he was not giving up on the conversation, "just hear me out, ok?"

"No, Jack… I can't. Because I don't have any other option, any other choice. This is my life, this is what it is going to be, forever, and I have made my peace with it," she said, the aggravation evident in her tone.

"Just give me one chance. Let me just put this out there and then ignore it if you want to," he said, his tone equally mixed aggravation but trying to remain calm as to not push her further away.

She looked away, avoiding his gaze for a moment, before she nodded her head slightly.

"You told me you were innocent, and I believe you. I also believe that it is not an easy case as the evidence all points to you. And I don't know why you never tried to get a lawyer, or whether you did and it did not end up well, but that's… that's not what is important. But what is important is that you are innocent, and you do not deserve to live your life on the run, to spend your life hiding and scared and … you deserve a much better life, Kate. And I can help you with that. I want to help you," Jack said softly, his eyes meeting hers that were beginning to well up.

"Jack… you can't… there's nothing you can do…" she said, her voice choking.

"Yes, there is," he said with a smile, "my father, my family, we're well connected, we have some of the best lawyers in the country, and I am sure they will be able to help you with this."

She shook her head, "no, I don't want you to get too involved in this. To get your father into this? Jack, I know how much you'd hate that," she huffed, wiping quickly at her tears.

"Kate, you would not have to worry about me, or my father," he said, urging her to look back at him.

"Jack, you don't have to…" she said, trying hard not to lose her composure.

"Look, nothing has to be decided right now. I just wanted to let you know that there is another way, if you want to," he said, "don't shut it down right away, just think about it. You think you can do that? For me?"

She let out a tired breath, her fingers running through her hair quickly before she nodded, "ok, I will," she said, starting to walk back off with him by his side, "let's just get home, ok?"

* * *

AN: just for the record, I have nothing against the Lakers. Just needed a random storyline to get Sawyer and Juliet to hang out alone.

Coming Up: A party at Juliet's house, Kate makes a decision... and maybe it's time to leave Sydney and move this party to a different place. Where do you think we're heading to? Plus, more familiar faces!


	16. You Can't Fix This, Jack

Hey, I have decided that I will be ending this in chapter 21 (or 22 depending on whether I split chapter 19 into two parts or not). So basically, we can safely say this is coming to an end. But I have started a new fic that I would love for you all to check out. It is called Not With Anyone, and it is set in season 3.

In the meantime, here's chapter 16, in which Jack actually opens up and says something about how he feels. As my good friend Erica would say, in this chapter, Jack is not so thickheaded. LOL!

As always, thanks for reading and reviewing. Enjoy!

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**Chapter 16: You Can't Fix This, Jack**

Jack reached onto the bedside table, blindly searching for the vibrating phone. The blinking clock next to him was telling him it was half past ten, and he knew it meant he was late.

He mumbled a sleepy "hello," into the phone, and Claire's shriek on the other end shook all the remnants of sleep out of him.

"You're still in bed?" she said, "I'm gonna be at your place in fifteen minutes, and you better be ready."

She left him no room to fight his case, so he immediately hopped out of bed, looking for anything to wear. Claire's aunt and mom had offered to look after Aaron, giving her and Jack a chance to have a morning together without the constant need to attend to the infant. They had planned breakfast together; a adults only breakfast, Claire had said, before Jack teased her about not being able to be part of it, as she was just a kid herself.

"You did all that in fifteen minutes?" she asked as he got into the car with her, "I'm impressed," she said mocking that all eh had to do was pull on his jeans and a white t-shirt.

"So how was last night?" she immediately asked, barely giving him time to click the seat belt in place.

She caught him off guard, and he stumbled slightly with his reply, "are you sure you want to ask me that? Isn't that usually something girls talk about?" he said trying to evade the question.

"Oh, don't worry, Kate will get the sit down too," she smirked, "but I promised Shannon we'd do it together, so I'm going to have to grill you first."

Jack threw his head back with a sigh, "can I have my coffee first?"

"How's Aaron?" Jack asked once they had sat down at the coffee shop.

"Oh, no, you're not getting off so easily," Claire teased.

"I figured that much. Can you at least ease into it with some normal conversation first?" Jack asked, realizing he was going to lose the battle with his persistent sister.

"Fine, I can work with that," Claire said, "Aaron's fine. He managed to sleep for three hours straight last night, which is such a huge improvement."

"And your mom? How is she coping?" Jack asked about Carole who had been out of the hospital for almost a week.

"She's great. She hates the wheelchair, but at least she starts physical therapy next week," Claire said, truly ecstatic about having her mother back. She felt that in the past week, she went from being alone, to having a whole new family, a son, a brother and her mother back.

"Ok, your turn, no more stalling!" she said, "how was your date?"

Jack smiled, unable to his the little disappointment in how the evening had ended, "it was great," he said.

"Oh, no, what happened?" Claire asked, noticing immediately the dejected tone of his voice.

"Nothing, nothing, it was really a great evening," Jack added quickly.

"You really like her a lot, don't you?" Claire asked.

"Jack, please, you could be walking around with a "I Heart Kate" t-shirt and it would be less obvious," Claire teased him, "so what is the problem?"

Jack sighed; this conversation was really going to happen, whether he wanted it to or not, "it's complicated."

"Love always is," Claire said with a small shake to the head.

Jack almost choked on his coffee, setting the cup down and looking at her, "who said anything about love?"

He was just over six months out of a marriage that ripped him apart, love was definitely not on the menu as far as he was concerned, at least, not yet.

"OK, then…what is it?" Claire asked.

Jack sat silently, trying to rationalize, put into words what exactly his feelings were Kate were. Claire watched him as the look on his eyes changed, taking him away from where they were into that place in him that only Kate occupied. She knew he was thinking of her because he got that look on his face, the look where the ever existing crease in his brow disappeared, the intensity in his eyes calmed down, and a soft smile drew on his lips. She just sat back and enjoyed the look on his face, jealous that he has found someone he felt so strongly about, even if he was not aware of it yet.

He finally snapped out of it, looking at her slightly embarrassed before he spoke. "When I went to Thailand, I was completely broken. I had given up hope on everything, my dad, my work, people in general… love. When I was there I was living just so recklessly, I didn't care about anything anymore." He dropped his head, thinking back to the first few weeks in Thailand when he would just go out, drink whatever it took to make him completely numb, gamble, and get into bar fights…

"It wasn't like I wanted to die or anything," he said remembering the few times he came close to just that, "but it was like I did not care if I lived."

"But then, this one night I took it a bit too far, got into this situation with the worst kind of people, and I knew I was a dead man after that," he said, making eye contact with her for the shortest moment before looking away, "but I was lucky to be "rescued" by the most amazing family. They took me in, helped me when I was a complete stranger, and it kind of restored my faith in that the world is not just pure evil."

"Even after that, though, I was still just… floating aimlessly around. I knew I had to snap out of it, that I had to get back to reality soon. I was aware of that. But some part of me was just waiting for something. I didn't know what it was, but I knew that I had traveled half way around the world looking for that one thing. That spark of something that would just give me reason that it is not all worthless."

Claire watched him opening up to her, seeing him a new light. She felt closer to him, listening her brother reveal the darker, broken part of him. She knew from the moment she met him, looking into his eyes, clouded with so much pain, that he had a lot of demons buried deep within him. But she also knew about him, that he would always be willing to keep them buried, keep them to himself as to not burden others with them. She felt honored that he was willing to share this with her, and for the first time, she truly felt they were brother and sister, in the full sense of the word.

She smiled at him sweetly, urging him to continue. "I eventually realized how absurd I was being. I was acting foolishly and irrationally, and decided it was time to go back home. I went out for one last night of insane drinking, planning to take the flight home in two days," he said.

"I was having a drink at the slimiest, sleaziest bar in the city. A place where you can only expect the lowliest of low lifes. Instead, I met Kate."

"Luckily, I wasn't that drunk yet," he laughed slightly, "and there was something about her. She was sweet, but there was this darkness about her… not evil, but not naïve and shallow like most women I had in my life. It was just… I talked to her that evening, and it just felt… right. Sitting next to her, talking to her, watching her, hearing her laugh. I know what this might sound like… but I thought that maybe I did care about living or dying after all. And I wanted to live."

He dipped his head, and she could see the blush on his cheeks. Jack Shephard was obviously not a man who opened his heart that often.

"And now?" Claire asked coyly.

"I'd do anything for her. I've gotten to know her and I feel that more and more everyday," he said.

"Does _she_ know that?" she asked him, trying to pry more confessions from him, "have you told her any of this?"

"Not in so many words, no," Jack admitted, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Claire asked in shock.

"I told you… it's complicated. Kate has a lot to deal with, back home… she doesn't need this now," Jack said, trying to remain as vague as possible, not wanting to expose Kate's situation.

"Doesn't need that? Jack, please," Claire started, shifting in her seat to look at him straight in the eyes, "I know Kate has problems back home, with her family or something, she didn't exactly say, and I know Kate and I cannot be more different. But she's a woman, and I'm a woman, and believe me when I tell you, a woman would always need to hear something like that. No matter what problems and issues she has, no matter how hard she tried to push you away or pretend she does not need that, she wants you to tell her that. Hell, I bet she is waiting for you to say something that would help her to take the next step. She probably feels the same way but is just terrified to be the one to make the first move."

"She doesn't," Jack stated simply, remembering how easy it was to just sleep in bed casually next to him while he lay there terrified of making a wrong move, "she told me she just wants to be friends."

Claire shook her head in slight frustration, "Jack, really, are you that naïve when it comes to women?" she joked and he smiled, "trust me on this. I care about you both a lot, and I want you to be happy."

After breakfast, Jack told Claire he would walk back to the apartment, hoping that the fresh air and exercise would help him think about what she had just told him. The walk back took longer than he had expected but he was glad it did. It had been a long time since he'd had that much peace and quiet, time to think without the constant background noise.

He not only thought about Kate, but it allowed him time to think about his father, about work and about his new found family. He had been considering it for a while, and at some point he had talked to the chief of medicine at St. Sebastian that he wanted to leave, work in a place where he wasn't the son of Dr. Christian Shephard, having his father looking over his shoulder like he was still six years old. The way he saw it at the moment, this was a perfect opportunity to make a huge change in his life. He had a sister and a nephew living in Sydney, and a woman he cared about in Sydney, and if she refused his help, might have to stay longer in Sydney because going back to the states was not option. The way he saw it, Sydney sounded like a good option; away form his father for a while, a chance to prove himself on his own, without his father's disapproving, disappointed eyes following his every step.

He arrived back at the apartment over an hour later to find it empty, neither Kate nor Sawyer were there. He picked up his phone and dialed Sawyer's number.

"Hey, Sawyer, where are you guys at?" he asked.

"Hey, Juliet called inviting us over for dinner, so Freckles and I thought it would be nice to get her something," Sawyer said.

"You thought of that? Really?" Jack teased.

"Well, Freckles did and dragged me with her," Sawyer grumbled, "Want us to add your name to the pretty card?"

Later in the afternoon, the group of friends had gathered at Juliet's place, including Claire, Shannon and Boone.

"What's the special occasion?" Shannon asked, seeing the fancy spread on the table.

"Well, I thought since Sawyer was leaving soon, we could have one lat get together," Juliet smiled.

"You're leaving?" Jack asked, turning to Sawyer.

"Oh, don't look so heartbroken, Doc, I know you'll miss me, but I got a little girl I rather be hanging out than you," Sawyer smirked, "I leave tomorrow afternoon."

"Oh, so this is a celebration then?" Kate joked, nudging him playfully.

"Oh, yeah, you joke now, but don't come crying to me when you're stuck with Dr. Giggles reading medical journals all night," Sawyer retorted.

Most of the evening was spent with everyone fussing over Aaron who had started to make more baby tricks. He giggled when someone tickled his chin, made baby sounds, grabbed people's fingers and, everyone's favorite, pulled Sawyer's hair.

"I cannot wait to have one those!" Shannon squealed.

"Really? Shan? You with a baby?" Boone teased, "I'd love to see that."

"Oh, shut up, I can have a baby!" Shannon said.

"No, don't get me wrong, you can have one, you just won't be able to take care of it," Boone said.

"And why wouldn't I?" she said with frustration.

"Shan? Where's your phone?" Boone asked.

"I forgot it at the club last night," Shannon admitted.

"I rest my case," Boone smiled proudly.

"Jackass," Shannon muttered, ignoring her brother and going back to playing with Aaron.

After dinner, with Aaron going to sleep, the adults had the chance to enjoy an adults evening, gathering in the living room, sipping drinks and chatting. Soft music was playing in the background and at some point, Sawyer jumped to his pulling Juliet up with him, pulling her against him and starting to dance, shocking everyone in the room, including Juliet.

With everyone engaged in either conversation or dance, Kate took the opportunity to sneak out to the balcony. She was genuinely having a good time, but she also had so many things on her mind, she needed some alone time, some peace and quiet. Jack hadn't brought up their conversation from last night, and she honestly appreciated that he was giving her the space to think about it, but she knew she could only stall for so long before she had to give him an answer. It was unfair to either one of them to keep this hanging between them.

Jack saw her leave the room towards the balcony, and watched as she leaned against the railing, standing in the moonlight, her hair flowing in the evening breeze. He watched her for a few minutes before he got up to join her.

"Hey," he whispered, not wanting to startle her as she looked deep in thought.

"Hey," she smiled, turning to look at him.

"Having fun?" he asked, coming to stand next to her, mimicking her position and leaning against the railing, his arm gently brushing against hers.

"Yeah, you?" she asked.

"Yeah…" he breathed out, enjoying the view from where they stood.

They remained in their positions for a few moments before Kate spoke again, "Jack, I know why you're here…"

"No, no," Jack argued, "it's ok, you don't have to say anything. I meant it, take as long as you need," he smiled, his hand moving to squeeze hers.

He waited for her to pull away, and when she didn't he took the opportunity to twist his hand in hers, intertwining his fingers with hers, his thumb moving smoothly over her hand.

She watched their intertwined hands for a moment. Her small one fitting perfectly inside his larger one, the warmth and security it enjoyed nestled in there something she'd missed out her whole life, something she's yearned for her whole life.

"I have thought about your offer, Jack. It's all I have been thinking about for the last twenty-four hours. Do you understand why this is hard for me Jack? Do you understand what you're making me choose between?" she said, her voice slightly shaking.

He turned slightly to face her and so did she, keeping their hands between them, and she spoke again, "For the first time, someone is offering me a choice, remain a fugitive or get my freedom back… and in my head, I think about these options, and I cannot help but laugh at how ridiculous it is that I find this decision hard. But I cannot help but think of the second options as just some false, naïve hope. I feel like if I try to change things, I would be grasping at something that doesn't exist, that I would expose myself and only make things worse for myself."

She had tears in her eyes now, and she made no attempt to hide them, allowing them to fall freely down her cheeks, "I feel like I'm gonna fall, and if I do this time, there is no getting up from it," she shook her head, looking up at him, "and it's not just me who would be crashing this time, Jack. You would be risking so much that you don't need to risk. You don't deserve to lose everything because of me. I can't make you do this for me, risk so much…" she sobbed.

He looked down at her bowed head, his finger lifting it gently to get her to look at him, "You're not making me do anything, Kate. I want to do this," he said, wiping swiftly at a stray tear.

She shook her head, letting out a strangled sob, her eyes meeting his, "why?" she asked.

He smiled, looking her at her, his eyes never leaving hers, their depth, warmth and honesty bringing more tears to her eyes. After a moment, he bowed his head down, and gently brought his lips to hers, kissing her for the shortest moment, barely giving her time to react to him, to respond to the warmth and softness of his lips on hers before pulling back, "that's why… I can't lose you, Kate," he whispered.

Kate let another sob escape her throat, "you can't fix me, Jack."

Jack's hand came up to her face again, wiping at her cheeks, trying to erase all the tears, "you're not broken, Kate," he said.

She pulled her hand out of his, and he was expecting her to pull away and leave, feeling as tough he'd blown his last chance wit her. Instead she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling herself against him, burying herself into him. He responded, bringing his arms around her waist and pulling her tighter against him, feeling her tears seep through his shirt where her face was buried against his chest, and he held her as she cried. He ran his fingers through her hair, trying to help her calm down, whispering gently into her ear.

She finally let go, pulling away from him slightly. She wiped away her tears and timidly brushed her hair behind her ear. She smiled at him, biting at her lower lip before she whispered, "ok."

Jack looked at her in disbelief, the smile on his face stretching in genuine happiness, "ok?" he asked, still shocked.

She nodded, her smile widening, reaching her eyes as they glimmered with what looked like hope, "ok," she said again.

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*phew* that was pretty intense to write. Hope you guys enjoyed it!

Next up: Jack starts making the necessary calls to get this thing started!

Chapter 17: Ben and Jacky.


	17. Ben and Jacky

Ok, so his is a sort of a transition chapter. Although a whole bunch of Losties appear, nothing major happens here, plus it's a bit short on Jate. But it's a set up chapter. I tried to keep it as short as possible. So I hope you can bear with it before we jump to the next chapter (which will have some major story development)

And one more thing, you guys have to, and I mean like you _HAVE TO_ read **The Talisman**, which the amazing **Aaileen** is writing. It would be a crime against humanity if you are not reading it. Now. Go. Read!

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Chapter 17: Ben and Jacky**

Kate paced the room frantically, Jack, on the other hand, sat still on the couch. They both watched the clock. The call had to be made in twenty minutes and they were both anxious. Her pacing was starting to make him as nervous, so Jack reached over when he passed in front of him, grabbing her hand and pulling her to sit next to him. He tightened the grip on her hand, rubbing a thumb gently over her skin.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay," he whispered gently.

She released a deep sigh, allowing herself to calm down for a moment.

When it was time, Jack took the phone off the table and made the call. Benjamin Linus was not Jack's favorite person. As a matter of fact, Benjamin Linus was most certainly on Jack's list of men he truly despised. He was a dirty, ruthless man, who would do absolutely anything to get what he wants. He was not above selling his own family for a winning case. But Jack guessed that was what made him one of the best lawyers in the country. It was also clear why his father made sure Benjamin Linus represented all his legal issues. Christian had escaped quite a few lawsuits that he should not have escaped thanks to Benjamin Linus's shady ways.

Jack had stayed clear of any contact with Benjamin Linus. Both his father and the lawyer had tried many times to get Jack to have Ben as his lawyer but Jack had always adamantly refused. He never had a reason to need such a man working for him. But he knew that now, with Kate, he needed someone like Benjamin Linus because only a man like that could get Kate off from all the charges she was up against.

When Ben picked up on the other end, Jack gave Kate a quick smile and moved to the bedroom. Kate sat anxiously on the couch, switching between biting her nails and flipping madly through the TV channels. Jack was not gone fifteen minutes, but she felt like it had been hours. For a moment she considered going up and pressing her ear against the bedroom door but quickly dropped that thought.

When Jack walked out of the room, he found her perched on the couch, staring at the door he was walking out of. She stared at him expectantly, and he smiled sweetly. He came over to sit next to her, and she started to relax as she saw his calm features.

"So?" she asked anxiously when he didn't say anything.

"He'll do it," he said, his smile spreading over his face.

Her lips twitched, wanting to smile, but still not so sure, "he will?" she asked again, still not believing. Jack had told her about this guy, and while she understood that his ways weren't the most moral or the most ethical, she knew he was her only chance, and she trusted when Jack told her that.

"Well, he wants to meet with you, have you tell him everything, from start to finish. I'm sure he'll have some questions, personal, touchy stuff. But he said he's in," Jack said calmly, trying not to get her scared over the prospects of meeting Ben.

"Okay…" she started, swallowing hard, her eyes staring into her lap, "how am I going to meet him? Is he coming here? I'm not sure I can go back to the US…" she rambled before he cut her off.

"No… you wouldn't have to go back, but he cannot come here either," Jack said, his voice still calm, contrasting her nervousness, "we're going to have to go to London."

She looked at him bewildered, "London?" she gasped, "that's… that's two airports, Jack… we can't pull that off without me being caught!"

"Hey, don't worry," he said, taking her hands in his, "I know you think I can't handle this stuff like Sawyer, but…" he took a deep breath before he finished, "I might have different methods than him, but I can do this. Ben Linus is not the only ruthless creature my dad knows. I try to avoid my father's circle of friends, but I know what they are capable of, and getting you to London is one of them," he finished with a smile.

She smiled shyly at him, "are you sure you want to do this?" she asked.

He raised his eyebrows at her, laughing heartily, "are you seriously gonna ask me this again?"

"Ok, ok… sorry," she said, "ok, so what is your big plan?"

A few hours later, Jack was on the phone again, this time dialing a friendly number, a person he had known since they were both very young children.

"Hello?" came the familiar voice on the other end.

"Hi, Penny, it's…" Jack started but was quickly interrupted by the squeal he heard.

"JACKY!" Penelope Widmore shrieked, excited to hear from her childhood friend.

Jack cringed at the nickname, one that she had given him when he was five and still refused to drop to this day, "Hello, Penelope," he said.

"Oh, God, please don't call me that. My father calls me that," Penny flinched.

"Annoying isn't it?" Jack teased.

"God, yes," Penny said with a chuckle.

"So is Jacky," Jack deadpanned.

Penny laughed, "fair enough," she said, "so, to what do I owe the pleasure? Last I heard, the great Jack Shephard was sulking in Thailand. Or at least that was what your father told mine."

"Ugh, I keep forgetting how annoying it is that our fathers are friends," Jack laughed.

"Aw, come on, if it weren't for them, we would never have met, and I would never have had those pictures of us on the beach in California that I showed off to all my boarding school friends in London. Their friendship did wonders for my social life," Penny teased, earning another laugh from Jack.

After a few minutes of chit chat, Jack finally got to the point of the phone call, trying to pretend the look that Kate was giving him was not boring holes through him.

"Penny, I was actually calling to ask you a favor. Now this is huge, so if you cannot do it, please, just say so, ok?" he started.

"Ok, what is it? You're making me nervous, Jacky," Penny said.

"I need help that only your father can provide. I know how much you hate to get involved in his businesses and his people…" Jack took a deep breath before he continued, "I have a friend… someone close to me who needs to get into London without… well, without being seen."

"Jack? What have you gotten into?" Penny asked, shocked that someone like Jack would need help with something like this.

"Penny, trust me… it's not… I'll explain things later, but I just need to know if you can help. Does Des still work for your father?" Jack asked, preferring to work with her husband than directly with her father or anyone else from his men.

"yeah… yes. He's actually in Korea now, a business trip to visit one of my father's associates or something…What do you need me to do?" she asked.

A half an hour later, Jack and Penny had gone over most of the details, and he had contcted Des to lay out the plan, He sat down to explain the next step to Kate. Desmond was in Korea with another of Widmore's employees, a new guy that Jack had never met, but apparently was Desmond's new "partner". Des and this new guy, Sayid, were in Korea meeting with Mr. Paik, a man who Jack had heard of but never met a his father never had direct business with.

Des and Sayid were supposed to escort Mr. Paik's daughter and son in law to London for a business meeting there. It was agreed that they would first make a stop in Sydney to "pick up" Jack and Kate.

It was all set to happen within two days. It was short notice but this was their only chance and they did not have the chance to be leisurely about it. They decided to have one last get together with their Sydney friends and family. They invited Claire and Aaron, Juliet, Boone and Shannon for dinner the following night, which was the same night that Desmond and his group arrived. Their little apartment was slightly crowded, especially with a few faces they did not recognize. To everyone's amazement, except Boone's, Shannon took it upon her to befriend Desmond's partner, Sayid. The two other people with Des were the Korean couple, Sun, Paik's daughter and her husband Jin.

Claire was slightly devastated. She did not like the idea that her brother and her new best friend were both leaving her. They both urged her to stay longer after the other guests had left. Kate took her aside while Jack cleaned up after the guests. They were gone for quite a long time when they walked back in from the balcony, both slightly teary eyed.

Kate had told Claire everything, about her past, why they had to leave, and what Jack was doing for her. Knowing the truth made it all easier for Claire to say good-bye, for now, as she joked while she hugged Kate tightly.

Jack and Kate packed quietly what few belongings they had. They were both anxious, the trip ahead of them long and dangerous, and they had to be very careful. According to Des, Sayid, who was planning their undercover entry to London, was very good at what he does. And Jack trusted Desmond, that much was definite.

They met at a small restaurant on the way to the airport, where Sayid explained the plan to the group and provided Kate with the necessary paperwork. Jack and Kate were slightly wary as to why the Korean couple did not mind to be part of it, but the more they spent time with them, the more they realized they were more of an asset to this operation than a problem. Jin apparently had as much experience in these matters as Sayid and Des, having worked for Mr. Paik, who Jack was starting to realize was a Korean version of Charles Widmore.

A few hours later, they stood in line for checking in, Kate glued to Jack side, the trepidation evident on her face. Jack turned to her, his hand coming up to gently brush her cheek, "hey," he whispered softly, "everything's going to be ok."

She looked at him, taking in the calmness and confidence in his warm eyes. She nodded slightly, a small smile spreading across her tightened lips, "everything is going to be ok," she repeated, her hand reaching for his and holding to it tightly as they moved to take their turn at the counter.

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Like I said, not my favorite of chapters, but I am really excited for the next one! And to make up for this chapter, here are a few teasers for...

CHAPTER 18: THE PROBLEM WITH LOCKES

London! So it's not _the_ island, but it is an island LOL! We get to spend some time with Penny, who let's Kate in on some Jack Shephard secrets... or at least, tells Kate stuff about Jack that Kate might not be aware of. And well, Jate just might share a bed again... maybe... maybe not. Who knows...

And we also meet Benjamin Linus *shudders* and his associate...


	18. The Problem With Lockes

Here's the next update. Tried to get it up as fast as I could. Kate is going to be a little less confident in this chapter. She may seem a little less like her usual tough self, as she was in Sydney, but now in London, she is more exposed. While during her stay in Sydney, only Jack knew about her past, now in London, she is surrounded by five other people and the feeling of being so vulnerable will start scaring her.

And I don't know if I am the only one, but I love Jack/Penny (platonically of course). I always secretly hoped that they would give us more of them on the show. But that never happened so I will do it myself LOL!

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Chapter 18: The Problem With Lockes**

Kate shifted, twisting and turning as she tried to get comfortable in the tight confines of the airplane seat. They had been on this flight, between Dubai and London, for a couple of hours, but she had been out of it after just a few minutes of boarding, falling asleep with her head resting on Jack's shoulder. She opened her eyes and looked up. His head was resting backwards, his eyes shut and his mouth slightly opened. She took a moment to take him in, seeing him so calm and relaxed was a sight to behold. His tired features were relaxed into a boyish sweetness. She looked down, noticing his long legs cramped uncomfortably between his and the seat in front of him. She couldn't imagine how uncomfortable it was for him. She was far shorter and found the seat annoying.

She was snapped out by the flight attendant, "excuse me, ma'am, we will be serving dinner soon, if you would like to wake your husband," she said, smiling sweetly.

Kate blushed, dropping her head against her chest for a moment before she said, "we're not..." signaling between them.

She chuckled embarrassedly when the lady apologized and walked away. Kate smiled, the thought of being married to Jack bringing a smile to her face. Would it be that scary to give that man a chance? She thought to herself. The smile on her lips faded slowly as she came to the realization, what she was scared of was not giving Jack a chance, it was giving herself a chance, a chance at happiness, a chance at even love maybe.

She touched his forearm, shaking him slightly, "Jack?" she whispered trying to wake him up.

His eyes fluttered a few times before he opened them fully. H felt the tension in his legs and back, the discomfort evident on his face. He turned his face and smiled, forgetting the pain, as he was welcomed by her bright green eyes, smiling up at him.

"Hey," he whispered sleepily.

The smile on her lips stretched wider, "hey... Sorry I woke you, but they're bringing dinner," she said apologetically.

"No, it's ok, I need to stretch my legs anyway," he said.

They landed in London shortly after midnight, exhausted and sleepy. Desmond dropped Jack, Kate, Jin and Sun at their hotel and made plans to pick them up the next day for lunch at his and Penny's house.

They went to their separate rooms, wanting nothing more than to sleep. Separated by a thin gypsum wall, they each lay in their respective beds, suddenly realizing how hard it was to sleep without the other person by their side.

Jack was woken up the next morning by the telephone next to his bed.

"Hello?" he grumbled into the phone.

"Aw, Jacky, did I wake you up?" he heard Penny's voice on the other side, her tone somewhat apologetic but laced with a little teasing, as it always was between them.

"Yeah, you did," he teased back.

"Ok, in that case, put on some clothes and meet me downstairs. I was thinking we could get some breakfast together and you update me on what the he'll you've gotten yourself into," she said.

"Penny, I'm gonna see you at lunch, can I get just a few more hours of sleep?" he groaned dropping his arm over his eyes trying to avoid the sun flooding his room.

"Nope, it is going to be crowded over lunch and I would not have time to grill you with all my questions. Plus I want all the details on this mystery girl before i meet her," Penny said.

Jack finally relented, getting out of bed and digging through his suitcase for something to wear. A half an hour later, he was in the hotel lobby being greeted by his oldest friend. He immediately forgot the fact that she had just woken him up after two days of travel and smiled ecstatically, quickly wrapping her into a hug.

They pulled back and looked at each other. "You're looking great," he said.

"Hey, don't get any ideas," she laughed, "you had your chance with me, Jack Shephard, and you blew it."

Jack threw his head back in laughter, "oh, I am so sorry, Mrs. Hume," he said.

They had breakfast in the hotel, catching up on each others lives, Penny's marriage, Jack's divorce, each took turns venting about their father and finally Jack filled Penny in on Kate and her situation. Begrudgingly, Penny had to cut their breakfast short in order to prepare for lunch.

Penny was Jack's oldest and closest friend. They met when he was five and she was two, in a sandbox, and that was when she'd given him her favorite nickname. Her father had just started Widmore Pharmaceuticals and Christian Shephard was his partner on this specific endeavor. They had been friends ever since. Being separated by an ocean was not an issue for their friendship since both families had frequent travels and met on a lot of family vacations. Their friendship had never extended beyond platonic although it could have been on a few occasions. When she was fourteen, Penny had the craziest crush on him. At seventeen, Jack had very little interest in his young friend, especially as he was dating the head cheerleader at the time. However, five years later, when Penny did a semester at Columbia, Jack could not stop thinking about the young woman who had grown out of her awkward teenage years. They never did cross the line though, and when Penny started dating Demsond, the young Scotsman participating in her father's sailing competition, she was off the market forever.

Jack was glad he was finally having this conversation with someone he was close to and trusted. He had not had the chance to really talk to her since before his divorced and it was good to finally get things off his chest that he could not with anyone else.

At noon, Jack knocked gently at Kate's door. They were supposed to leave within thirty minutes and he was checking in to see if she was ready. When she did not answer, he opened the door gently, calling her name before stepping in.

Upon hearing his voice, she popped her head out of the bathroom door, "hi," she said.

"You ready?" he asked, taking in the mess in the room, clothes scattered everywhere, "ok I take that back," he laughed when he saw the guilty look on her face.

She walked out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel, and obviously unaware of how little she had on, because she started rambling quickly. Jack on the other hand, was very aware; trying hard to focus on her face and not any lower, straining to listen to what she was saying while his blood was pumping loudly in his ears.

"I am so sorry Jack, I just don't know what i should wear. I mean, is this a formal thing? Casual? Jeans? Dress? Oh my God, I don't even have a dress," she was darting around the room, panicking.

As she was zooming next to him, Jack quickly grabbed her shoulder, steadying her. He looked at her straight in the eyes, his tone serious, but unable to hide the amused snicker on his face, "Kate, it's just lunch with friends. You can wear whatever you want."

"Exactly Jack, that's just it. It's your best friend, your oldest friend! And she's a woman! She'll be judging everything I do!" she said frantically.

Jack laughed. He had never seen Kate like that. He suddenly realized that he loved that side of her. "Kate, since when do you care what others think? And who says anyone will be judging you? You don't need to prove anything to anyone, ok?"

Kate took a moment, searching into his eyes, warm and reassuring as always, and finally nodded. She turned, grabbing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt off of the bed and ran to the bathroom.

Lunch went surprisingly well. The seven people around the table represented a miniature United Nations as Desmond joked at some point, but they fortunately clicked right away and bonded easily. Kate could immediately understand why Penny and Jack were so close. And although she knew there was nothing between and that there never had been, she could not help that pang of jealousy towards that other woman who was so close to Jack, knowing practically everything there was to know about him.

Jin and Sun had to leave early to prepare for their meeting the next day, and Sayid offered to drive them back to their hotel. That left Jack and Kate at the mercy of Desmond and Penny. Desmond had coaxed Jack into joining him on the balcony to try some new cigars Mr. Widmore had been importing lately. Kate fidgeted slightly in her seat. Penny chuckled, "Are you scared of me, Kate?"

"Scared? No… why would I be scared?" Kate asked nervously.

"You're avoiding eye contact," Penny laughed.

Kate straightened, turning to face the other woman face to face, "usually, when people find out about me, about my past, they run in the other direction. They don't invite me into their homes for lunch," she said.

Penny smiled, realizing at last why Kate had been uncomfortable during lunch. The young woman had obviously lived her life in hiding, never being surrounded by so many people who knew about her past.

"Why would I run the other way? You're just an unlucky person, stuck in an unfortunate situation, who, from the looks of it, could use friends who believe in her more than anything else in the world," Penny said sweetly.

"So you believe I'm innocent?" Kate asked, still slightly wary of having so many people who know about her being around. She was overwhelmed by this sense of vulnerability that she had never allowed herself in the past.

"Of course I do," Penny said honestly.

Kate smiled, starting slowly to ease into a comfort zone, "why?"

Penny felt sorry for the woman sitting opposite of her. Her life must have been truly devastating for her to have so little faith in everyone around her and in herself. She smiled, pushing herself to the edge of her seat, "Jack believes you, he trusts you, and I learned a very long time to Jack's judgment about people, well, except that snake of an ex-wife of his, but that marriage was based on so many wrong things, I won't even go there," she laughed, "but Kate, his unwavering faith in you makes it hard to doubt it, your innocence."

Kate smiled, nodding gently, finally relaxing in her seat. She had not ever undermined Jack's faith in her, but she never knew how much his support of her would be essential in others perception of her.

Penny relaxed back against the couch, eying with a smirk the smile that drew on Kate's face at he mention of Jack's name. She had been somewhat anxious about Kate's entrance into Jack's life. She was scared that another woman had been using him. Her friend had been through a lot, and his heart was probably broken beyond repair. She had been watching Kate throughout the day, trying to pick up on anything that would make her think the same of her as she did of Sarah. She knew Jack said there was nothing between them, despite Jack's feelings, but she had to keep an eye on Kate. Penny had finally reached a decision about Kate.

"He really cares about you," Penny said.

Kate looked up at her, the uncomfortable smile returning to her face, "oh, Jack would do this for anyone. He went to Sydney to perform surgery on a perfect stranger," she said, trying to attribute Jack helping her to his inherent nature.

"Yeah, Jack would do anything to help anyone, it's just the way he is," Penny agreed, "but Jack would never seek the help of Benjamin Linus, not to save himself even."

"What?" Kate asked. She knew Jack didn't like to make business with this specific lawyer, but she did not understand what Penny was referring to.

"When he was going through his divorce, his ex, Sarah, she took him for everything. She abused Jack's kind heart, his need to make others happy before himself. Jack could have easily hired Ben, but he refused. Technically, she should have gone packing with nothing more than the skanky outfit she had on. But Jack felt bad. He thought that somehow her infidelity was his fault. But it was not only that… he did not care enough to hire a man like Ben, he just wanted it to be over in the most painless way, and the most ethical way. So he gave her what she wanted and ignored all the pressure from his father and from Ben," Penny explained, "so for him to bring Ben into this, to break every vow he had made throughout his life to not work with him, for him to accept all the moral and ethical consequences of this… Jack may not be the easiest person to express things verbally. He is a quiet, private person. But he expresses a lot by his actions… Kate, he really really cares about you."

Des and Penny insisted that their friends spend the whole day with them. They spent the day as tourists in London, with two guides showing them around. It was a fun, carefree day, but for Kate, her brain was working over time. What Penny had told her really hit home. She knew Jack had feelings for her, he had made that clear. But the new information did change things; it made clear just how deep those feelings could be running. She had tried to attribute the feelings he had expressed, and her own feelings, to infatuation, to two people crossing paths at tough moments in their life and clinging to each other. She never denied that pull that kept her going to him, but she had never experienced that before in her life, and she could not make sense of it the way she had to.

After dinner, their friends dropped them off at their hotel. The elevator ride was quiet and Jack could not help notice Kate's face, contorted in concentration, as though she was debating the hardest question in her life. He walked her to her room, stopping at her door, "Kate? You ok?" he finally asked.

She kept her eyes at the floor for a moment. She looked up at him at last, smiling, she nodded, "just sleepy… jetlag finally kicking in," she said.

He eyes her for a moment, knowing that there will always be a wall with her, something she will be unwilling to reveal. But he had promised himself to give her the space and time she needed. So he smiled back, "ok…good night, then," he said, squeezing her hand briefly.

He turned, walking over to his room, but he heard her, her voice was barely over a whisper, but it stopped him dead in his tracks, "I'm scared."

He turned back towards her, taking quick strides to be back by her side. He looked at her, waiting for more, an explanation, but she just stared up at him, her eyes wide with fear and anxiety, tears ready to spill.

"Kate," he finally spoke, "you don't need to be. I told you, Linus can do this. And I'll be there with you tomorrow. I know he won't be easy to handle, but I won't leave you alone with him…"

He was cut off by her shaking her head at his words, "I'm not scared of meeting that lawyer," she said.

Jack looked at her, the confusion taking over his face. She saw that and took a deep breath, "I'm scared of hurting you. I am scared of promising you something I cannot give. I am scared of failing, of breaking you, ruining you like I do everything in my life. I saw how you were in Thailand… I cannot be the reason this ever happens to you again," she said, the tears finally escaping down her face.

He gently wiped at he tears streaming down her face. He pulled her against him, wrapping her in his arms and she buried her face in his chest. He whispered gently into her hair, "Kate, you don't have to promise me anything. This is not a test, you won't fail at anything. You're not going to ruin anything, I'm not that easy to break," he chuckled slightly. "That man you saw in Thailand? He's gone because of you. You have already done enough to make sure than man never returns," he took a deep breath before he added, "Kate, you don't have to do anything you don't."

He was scared that he had put too much pressure on her, maybe he should have walked away, given her the space she needed before. The Kate in his arms then broke his heart, so damaged, scared and vulnerable. He held her longer, until she pulled back and quickly wiped at the remnants of the tears.

The frown on her face slowly turned into a smile, her smile widened at the confused glint in his eyes. She slowly rose up to her tip toes, her hand coming to rest on his cheeks, her lips finding their way to his. The kiss was slow at first, as it hit Jack by surprise, but he managed to catch up, his arm wrapping around her waist as he deepened the kiss. His stubbled cheek tickled her fingers, and she gladly relented control of the kiss to him.

They pulled out, resting their foreheads against each other. A soft chuckle escaped her lips, "that's where you're wrong, Jack," she whispered.

He looked at her questioningly. Her smile widened, "I do want to do something," she smiled, her eyes twinkling with excitement and anticipation.

His smile quickly matched her and he leaned in to steal another quick peck against her lips. "We'll take this slowly," he said, knowing how terrified she truly was about giving in completely.

She nodded in appreciation. She was glad that he was the one to say those words because as much as she was ready to get into this, she did not want to fall headfirst before her issues were resolved. She was telling him the truth when she said she could not promise anything just yet.

His fingers stroked her cheek gently, "good night, then," he said with a smile and headed again towards his room. She quickly reached for his hand, stopping him from walking away.

"Why don't you stay?" she asked bashfully, "I mean, just to sleep. We've done it before…"

He smiled, nodding slowly at the memory of the last time that happened, and how uncomfortable it was to just lie next to her. His smile widened at the thought that this time would be different, that maybe this time she will let him hold her like he had imagined so many times.

"There's one condition though," she said mischievously. He cocked his head towards her, his smile starting to slowly fade. "This time, you actually sleep. You don't just lie there like a frozen log scared of making a single move," she teased, pulling him into her room with her.

Neither of them was surprised how perfectly they feet together on the bed, his body spooned around hers, an arm wrapped around her waist, their finger intertwined and his face buried in her hair. Sleep came easily and quickly to both.

They got up early the next morning and got ready to meet with Benjamin Linus at Widmore's offices. Jack was not sure which should be more intimidating, the man or the location. Desmond picked them up and they rode in silence. Kate was obviously anxious but the support of Jack and her new friend was enough for her to keep her nerve.

They sat in silence in the waiting lounge for what seems like hours. Jack held Kate's hand in his tightly and gave her quick tips on how to deal with the lawyer, short simple instructions. _Don't break eye contact. Don't let him see you scared. Don't fall for his tricky questions. He will try to insult you, make you feel small and unworthy. Don't blink before he does. Keep your hand in your lap. Don't let him see you sweat. _Short terrifying instructions.

A middle aged woman finally walked out, "Mr. Linus will see you now," she said coldly.

Jack and Kate stood up, walking towards her. "Not you, Dr. Shephard. They want to see Miss Austen alone," she instructed.

Jack felt Kate freeze in fear next to him. He had promised her to be there for her. He started to argue with the woman but Kate stopped his with a hand to his chest. "It's ok," she said, "I have to do this alone."

She kissed him quickly, not giving him time to say anything in return and followed the woman towards the boardroom.

Jack sat alone in the waiting lounge for what seem like hours. He was starting to get anxious, and the secretary was doing very little to ease that anxiety, occasionally throwing out comments like, _they sure have been in there a while, and I hope he doesn't make her cry._

Jack rose quickly to his feet when he saw the door to he boardroom open but was disappointed when he did not see Kate walk out. Instead, a tall bald man in a dark blue beige suit with a devilish smirk did. The man walked over to where Jack was sitting and sat down right next to him. Jack eyes the man questioningly, but all the other man did was widen the smirk on his face.

He abruptly reached out his hand, "John Locke," he said.

Jack looked incredulously between the man and his hand before he shook it slowly, "Jack…" he started but John Locke quickly interrupted him.

"I know who you are, Jack Shephard," he said.

"I'm sorry, have we met before?" Jack asked in confusion.

"No, we haven't. I'm an associate of Ben, but we've never met. I do know your father though," John Locke said, "great man."

Jack could not stop the scoff that escaped his throat, "if you say so."

"I just met your girlfriend in there too," Locke said, "interesting case… I can see why you jumped on it so quickly."

"I'm sorry?" Jack said.

"Beautiful, young woman, playing the role of the innocent victim so well. A damsel in distress, and a man like you could never resist the temptation," Locke said.

"I'm sorry… look, I don't appreciate what you are insinuating. Kate is innocent," Jack said angrily, feeling his blood starting to boil.

"Oh, don't worry, she'll get out of this without a scratch on her record but only because she'll have the best lawyers," John said, still maintaining that frustrating composure, "but I for one, do not believe a word coming out of her mouth," he finished standing up quickly and storming away.

Jack was ready to get up after him when he saw Kate walking out towards him. He did not fail to notice the look she gave John Locke as he passed by her side. Jack was quickly in front of her, scanning her face quickly to catch on onto any reaction.

She finally smiled, the trepidation escaping her eyes. She wrapped her arms around his heck, finally relaxing after the trying two hours she had just experienced. When she pulled back she looked at him, clenching her jaw briefly before stating, "we're gonna have a Locke problem."

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Well that was a long one, LOL! Hope you guys enjoyed this. Drop me a review and let me know ;)

Coming Up:

Chapter 19: You All Everybody!

You know who is still missing from this fic? HURLEY AND CHARLIE that's who!


	19. The Man Behind the Curtain

Oh, wow! 211 reviews? OMG! I am so so so grateful! I cannot tell you how much each and everyone of them means to me! This chapter is dedicated to every one of my readers!

For everyone who has been asking about "Not With Anyone" I have every intention to continue that fic, but unfortunately I am currently swamped with work and whatnot, so it's one fic at a time. I'll pick it up once I complete this one.

I really had a hard time with this. Going between splitting it into two parts or not, and how to deal with the Locke issue. I hope it works out in the end, and you find this chapter satisfying… if not… blame my agent :p

I know this is getting longer than the chapter itself, but I need to explain what happened. I had said that this chapter was going to introduce Hurley and Charlie, but it was getting very long so I decided to cut it in half (actually 3 parts). We deal with the Locke problem first, and then we have some fun. Sorry for rambling, on with the chapter!

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Chapter 19: The Man Behind the Curtain**

"Do you know anything about that guy, John Locke?" Jack asked Desmond as Jack and Kate got into the car with him.

"Oh, no! Don't tell you got him on this case?" Desmond groaned.

"So you have heard of him, then?" Jack asked picking up on the disgruntled tone of his friend.

"I have, unfortunately, and I've also met him," Desmond said.

"What's his deal then?" Kate asked.

"It's all a little too odd. He was, you could say, a nobody in the firm. He had a lowly position pushing papers until six months ago," Desmond explained. "He disappeared for two weeks and then came back with a new position as Benjamin's right hand man."

"Just like that?" Jack asked skeptically.

"Just like that," Desmond explained, "from what I heard, the orders came from way up," Desmond said raising his eyebrows, "as in all the way up."

"You don't mean?" Jack asked in shock.

"That's exactly what I mean," Desmond nodded.

Kate sat in the back looking from one man to the other waiting for further explanation. But none came. "I don't understand what that means…" she finally said.

Jack tuned in his seat to look back at her. "Benjamin Linus is just an employee in the firm. He answers to someone, just like everyone else. And the man he answers to, his name is Jacob. That is all anyone knows of him. Apparently, Jacob talks to no one, meets with no one… he just observes and takes the big decisions," Jack explained.

"If no one talks to him then how to they get his orders?" Kate asked.

"There is this one guy, Richard Alpert, equally shady, but he is the only one allowed to meet and communicate with Jacob, and he is the one who is the link between him and everyone else," Jack said.

Kate shook her head in disbelief. All this sounded like some weird film or something.

"Does anyone have any idea why Jacob promoted this John Locke?" Jack asked, turning back to Desmond.

"From what I have heard, it was to punish Benjamin. About a year ago, Jacob gave out orders to lose a certain case but Ben refused, went against orders and won the case. So I suppose Jacob wanted to teach him a lesson," Desmond explained.

"But… how?" Jack asked, still unable to connect the dots, "and why would he say he thinks Kate's guilty? He'd just met her?"

"I suppose, you could say… John's job is to oppose every Ben decides, try his best to make every case difficult on Ben," Desmond said, "according to Charles, John Locke sued his father some years ago and although everyone knew that his father was guilty, John lost the case…to Benjamin… so you see how all his fits."

Jack nodded, taking in all the information and trying to figure out how to get John Locke off Kate's case.

"Is there a way we can get him off this case, though?" Kate piped in from the back.

"Well, you could try talking to Alpert, see if he could try to get through to Jacob…" Desmond said, his tone apologetic, "but I don't see how much good that could do."

"Can't we just talk to Jacob?" Kate asked honestly.

"Oh, no," Desmond said, the chuckle escaping unconsciously, "like Jack told you, no one talks to Jacob," he said.

They spent the rest of the car ride in silence, with Desmond dropping them off and making plans to get together later.

They rode the elevator up to the room they were now sharing, Kate being way more than eager to get out of the formal clothes she was in, but that was not the only thing on her mind.

She quickly worked the key card into the lock and pushed into the room, immediately kicking off the heals and losing the jacket. She turned abruptly, shocking Jack slightly. She took a deep breath, looking him straight in the eyes and spoke, "I want to see Jacob."

Jack took a moment to catch up to her, the intensity in her eyes shocking him slightly. His hands found her shoulders, "Kate, I told you, no one can meet with him," he spoke softly.

She took Jack's hand in hers and led him to the bed, "if I tell you something, no matter how strange it may sound, you'll believe me, right?" she asked.

Jack nodded, his eyes widening in anticipation as to what kind of information Kate could be dropping on him. Kate saw his shock and smiled despite her self. She leaned in and placed a quick peck against his lips, "don't worry, it's nothing scary," she chuckled.

She saw his features relax a bit, so she started, "I know this might sound a little too weird, but you have to admit, so is your story about a mystery man who runs things without being seen, right?"

"Well, here goes… I was thirteen. Wayne had beat up my mom really bad the night before, and when I walked into the kitchen; there was a puddle of blood on the floor. My mom lied and said she cut her finger while chopping vegetable. I was so pissed that day… pissed at her, at Wayne, at my dad, at myself… We were playing soccer at school and I missed an easy chance. So my temper got the best of me and I kicked the goal post. I wasn't wearing professional soccer shoes and ended up breaking 3 of my toes." She said, her jaw clenching in anger at the memory from her past.

"I was sitting in the hospital lobby, waiting for someone to pick me up when this man sits down next to me," she said, "and I swear Jack, I am not making this up," she looked up at him with pleading eyes.

Her hands were in her lap, twitching restlessly as she bit her lip, gauging his reaction. He took her hands in both of his and locked his eyes with hers, giving her a trusting, solid smile, "Of course I believe you," he said, putting to rest her fears and uneasiness.

"This man… he was tall, white with very blond hair and piercing blue eyes. It was a small town but I had never seen him before. He sat there for a few minutes, not saying anything. He held a plain white card in his hand, well, I thought it a blank card at first… He eventually spoke, his voice was calm and steady… you know the kind that is slightly eerie? It raises the hairs at the back of your neck?" she said with a shiver, and Jack nodded slightly, "yeah, that kind… he said my name and me head jerked towards me. He called me Katie and then Katherine. My mother hadn't taught me much in her day, but not talking to strangers was one of them. So I went back to staring at the door, hoping… praying that someone would come pick me up. Hell, at that point, I was so freaked out, I was hoping Wayne would come." She said, spitting her step father's name out with hatred and anger.

"But of course no one showed up," she huffed, "and a few minutes later, he spoke again. He said the strangest thing, even after all these years, I still remember what it was. Word for word. He said 'I know you feel like you're all alone now, Katie, that no one wants to hear you out or help you, but that won't always be the case,' he then slipped the card between my fingers and got up. He turned to leave but not before adding, 'if you ever need anything in the future, call that number.'" She said, shivering in discomfort at the buried memory she had hidden for years.

"I looked down at the card, and it was a clean white business card, I'd seen one before when Tom, he was my friend, brought his father's to school for Show and Tell," she drifted off slightly before refocusing on her story, "the card was white and there was name and a phone number embossed on white on it… no company, no title, no address… I didn't take it seriously, I was too creeped out, but I tucked it in the back pocket of my jeans. I soon forgot about it… until my senior year, when I was cleaning out my closet and found it there… I was less scared of the whole thing then, it had been a few years and I wasn't that scared little girl anymore, so out of curiosity, I called that number," she looked up at Jack to find him staring at her, waiting anxiously to where the story was going, she shook her head, "the number was disconnected." She finished with a small smile.

Jack waited for her to continue but she said nothing, so he spoke up, "Kate… I don't… what does this have to do with seeing…" before he could say the name, she cut him off, "Jacob. That was the name on the card. No last name either," she scoffed.

She let out a deep breath, "strange? Unbelievable? I know. I hardly believe it myself… I'm starting to doubt that maybe I just made this whole thing out," she laughed nervously.

Jack took a moment to absorb what she had just told him. It was strange he had to admit that, but from he had heard over the years of Jacob's antics it was not that strange. But the absurd coincident, the odds of it happening, that was what blew his mind, what was making it really hard to rationalize that. But he knew there was only one thing to do in this situation. They had to get in contact with Jacob.

Kate was off the bed by now, Jack unaware of how long it had been since she finished the story. She was starting to get restless, Jack had not said a word. _He doesn't believe me_, she thought. Her running instincts were starting to kick in. _This was a bad idea_, she thought_, the whole thing, agreeing to Jack's plan, coming to London… it will never work. _She felt the panic rising in her chest, making it hard to breathe, and the only thing she wanted to do was bolt for the door and disappear. But she knew she couldn't do that, she had promised herself before anyone else, that she was turning a blank page, starting fresh, and now she had someone else to think about. For once in her life, she had someone else to think of before herself. She turned back towards Jack, kneeling on the floor in front of him and urging him to look a her. She wanted to hear his answer, whatever his answer would be. He saw the fear and anxiety in her look and offered a sweet smile, his fingers brushing gently against her cheek, "let's call Jacob," he said, earning a grin from her that stretched from ear to ear.

They had to make a few calls, but they eventually managed to reach Richard Alpert, the closest anyone could get to Jacob.

"Hello?" Kate heard the voice on the other end say.

"Hello, is this Richard Alpert?" she asked nervously.

"Yes. Who is this?" Alpert replied.

"My name is Kate… Katherine Austen. I need to get in touch with Jacob," she said.

She could hear a slight chuckle on the other end before Alpert cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, young lady, but that is not possible," he said.

"I think he'll want to talk to me," she said, mustering courage she did not know she had.

This time, Alpert did not try to hide his laughter, "Oh you think so, do you? And why on Earth would Jacob want to talk to you?" he said.

"He told me to call anytime I needed to talk to him, and since the number he gave me was disconnected, I need you to get me through," she said, earning a raised eyebrow from Jack at her attitude.

Alpert was silent for a moment, he knew it was not beyond Jacob to seek out random people like that and promise them things with an air of mystery and cryptic messages. He knew what he had to do, Jacob's orders were clear.

After a moment of hearing nothing but slow, shallow breaths, Kate heard his voice again, "What did one snowman say to the other snowman?"

A part of Kate's brain was totally taken back by the question, however, there was another part that spoke before she could control it, "smells like carrots."

Jack, who was hearing the conversation looked at her in shock, his lips mouthing a confused, "what?"

Kate shook her head and raised her hand, silently motioning for him to keep quiet.

"Talking with Jacob directly is not really an option," Alpert said, after hearing the correct answer, "but you can tell me what you need and I will get the message through."

"No," Kate said, slightly aggravated, "I want to speak to Jacob directly."

"I do not know what you were expecting, Miss Austen, but that is out of the question. However, you can be sure that whatever your request is, it will definitely be granted," Alpert explained.

Kate took a deep breath, that was apparently her only choice, "fine," she said, "I want John Locke off my case."

* * *

Chapter 20: You All Everybody

Hurley and Charlie pop into the picture! The return of some of our favorite friends and a little something more!


	20. You All Everybody

Here's the next chapter! Hurley and Charlie finally make an appearance (albeit a brief one) and they are joined by a new face and an old face.

Hope you guys enjoy it!

**

* * *

Chapter 20: You All Everybody**

They finished their lunch with Des and Penny and decided to take a walk, they to get their minds off things. They ended up in the park, seated under a tree, enjoying the shade on this particularly sunny day. They had not been together officially for 24 hours and yet they seemed to fall into a rhythm that would suggest two people who had been together for years. Their actions and reactions to each other were so synchronized, so matched, that they completed each other in a way that shocked them both. The way he would reach out for her hand just as hers is moving to seek his, or how they would turn to look at each other at the same exact moment.

They sat under the shade of the tree, watching the busy afternoon unfold. He rested his back against the tree trunk, as she sat, perched snuggly, between his legs, her back resting against his chest.

She dropped her head back, letting fall under his chin, her loose curls tickling his neck. They sat quietly, enjoying that brief moment of calm and serenity they had not had the chance to enjoy before. His fingers traced phantom patterns over her arm, causing her skin to shiver.

"This is nice," she said, turning up to look at him, her breath blowing warmly against his skin. He looked down at her, her green eyes squinting slightly in the glare of the setting sun, her brown curls framing her freckled cheek, and he smiled. The hand that was on her arm reached down and found her had, his finger wrapping strongly around her smaller hand.

He leaned down, his nose brushing hers for the shortest moment before his lips found hers in a slow, passionate kiss. She tilted her head back, ignoring the awkward way her body was twisting. She moaned when he snuck his tongue between her lips, gently massaging her tongue. She reached up, burying her fingers in his short soft hair, pulling his head closer to hers. They broke from the kiss, both desperate for air.

She turned, snuggling her body deeper into his warm embrace, melting her body into his. Neither of them noticed the man who came to stand next to them until he spoke, "love day, isn't it?" he said.

Kate looked up, finally noticing him, she squinted against the glare and said, "yes, it's… it's you."

She straightened, sitting up rigidly, as she recognized the man standing next to them, a man she never thought she would ever see again. Jack looked in confusion between her and the man, shocked at first, then coming to the same realization she had come to, from her story earlier, this man, standing before them was no other than, "you're Jacob," Jack said.

Jacob nodded, a smile crossing his lips, "yes, I am. And you're Jack," he said.

Jack nodded silently, not sure what to say to this man, a man he always has his doubts even existed. He didn't need to say anything, though, as Kate had a told to say to Jacob herself.

"What are you doing here? Richard said we can't meet you?" She inquired.

"Richard only says what he is told to say, I do whatever I want to do, Kate," he explained, with a stoic expression plastered on his face.

"Why are you here?" she asked.

"From what I hear, you asked to see me, so I'm here now," Jacob said.

"Why now? I wanted to see you before, so why didn't you come then? I called the number you gave me…" she said.

"You weren't ready then, Kate," Jacob said blankly.

"I wasn't… what does that even mean?" Kate said, starting to get aggravated with his stoic manner.

"You were a scared, lost, confused and angry girl. I could not help you then," he said.

Jack felt Kate's agitation rising, and he took her hand in his, squeezing it gently, letting her know that he was there for her.

"And that was not the time to help me? When I was scared, lost and… and confused?" she said, trying to maintain a calm tone.

"What would you have done if I helped you then? Where would you have gone? You had no purpose, no reason, nothing to fight for," Jacob said.

"And who are you to decide if I deserved to be helped or not?" she said, finally losing the battle with her temper.

"Kate, I offer a service, and if think my services are not going to be useful in a certain situation, I won't offer them," he said.

"So that's it? So you think I deserve your _services_ now?" she said.

"Yes, yes I do," Jacob said, the tight smile returning to his lips.

"And why is that? What has changed?" Kate asked.

"You tell me," Jacob said.

Kate looked at him, confused at his question.

"Do you think you're still that angry girl? The one who had no where to go to?" Jacob said, looking between her and Jack, "you have found a purpose now, Kate, you're no longer wandering aimlessly through your life."

He smiled at them with a gentle nod and turned to walk away. "Wait," Kate called after him, jumping to her feet, "will you do it?"

Jacob turned to face her slowly, "do what?"

"Take John Locke off my case?" she said.

"Sure," Jacob said, and was quickly back on his way away from them.

A week passed after their meeting with Jacob in the park, and as he had promised Locke was off Kate's case. They had gotten a call from Benjamin Linus that same day and he let them know that it would be at least a few weeks before they would hear anything. Upon hearing the news, Jack and Kate decided to leave the hotel room, and moved into a small apartment his father owned in London. They had not taken their relationship to the next level, taking it slowly as Jack had promised, but they were becoming closer.

They were having breakfast at a coffee shop they'd grown slightly attached to when they sat down across from a familiar face. The blond man in front of them had a pair of dark shades and was resting his head in the palms of his hands, apparently nursing a headache, probably the result of a night of hard partying.

"He looks very familiar…" Kate said, rubbing her cold hands on the warm coffee mug in front of her.

"Who?" Jack asked.

"That guy," Kate said, pointing towards the blond guy.

Jack looked at him briefly and shook his head, "not really," he said.

"No?" Kate said, still trying to figure out where she had seen him before, "I don't know… there is something very familiar about him… I just…"

As Kate was trying to figure out who he was, the young man was joined by someone else at the table, a tall heavy set guy, who brought with him a large coffee mug, "Come on, drink up dude. You have an interview in an hour, and you're not going to this one hung over too," the larger man said, setting the coffee next to the blond and earning a disgruntled groan from him, "this interview is supposed to be the one that shows the world that Drive Shaft are not just some punk kids who spend their time getting high and entertaining groupies. We need to prove that Drive Shaft make kick ass music too."

"Drive Shaft… Drive Shaft…" Kate whispered to herself, the name also sounding familiar. And that was when it hit her. She shook Jack's arm and whispered, "Jack! That's Charlie from Drive Shaft!" she said.

"Who from what?" Jack asked, obviously not in touch with the pop boy band scene.

"Drive Shaft, they're Claire's favourite band," Kate explained, having not heard of them herself until she met Claire, "and that's Charlie Pace. Your sister thinks he's dreamy," she teased.

Jack turned around to take another look at this man, the guy his sister found dreamy it seems. Instead of recognizing him though, Jack recognized the man he was with.

Hugo Reyes. The man won the lottery when he was just twenty-five years old, and had spent his life since then "giving back" as he would explain it. He was one of the most prominent philanthropists in Los Angeles, having turned his winnings into successful investments and the profits from his investments into charities and donations. His name was on almost every new wing, annex and new piece of machinery in the hospital that Jack worked at. The greatest thing about him though, in Jack's opinion, was that he was not one of those pompous rich guys. He did good because he wanted to. He was still a humble guy, who enjoyed a good game of Horse and a drive thru meal from his favourite chicken fast food place and lived in the same home he grew up in.

Jack got up, patting Hugo gently on the back to get his attention, "Hugo?" he said.

Hugo turned, jumping to his feet quickly to greet the one doctor he had ever met who did not get on his nerves, and wrapped him in a bear hug quickly, "dude, I told you, it's Hurley!"

Jack left, giving his friend a slap on the back, "it's good to see you! What are you doing here?" Jack asked.

"I'm the new manager for Drive Shaft," Hurley said, turning to introduce Jack to Charlie, "this is Charlie, the lead bassist."

Charlie barely managed to lift his head up, giving Jack a half wave before dropping his head back to avoid the light. Hurley laughed, "that's the only clean one, the best I can work with, unfortunately. The band are trying to clean their image, and that's what I have to deal with," Hurley laughed, "what are you doing here? We had an event at the hospital a few weeks back and they told me you were on vacation."

"Yeah, I kinda am…" Jack said, preferring to stick to that version for now. He turned, his eyes meeting the confused and questioning glare of Kate, "Hurley, this is Kate, Kate, Hurley." He introduced the two before any further questions from either one of them.

Hurley and Charlie had to leave quickly to make it to the interview, so the chat was kept short and brief, with both friends promising to catch up soon. As Hurley was getting into his yellow Hummer, though, he managed to ask his friend one last question, "by the way, if you guys would like some tickets with back stage passes to the concert in two weeks, just give me a call."

…

Kate jumped back, quickly pulling the phone away from her ear as the squeak she that rang through the phone could be heard for miles. Jack came running from the kitchen as he heard it as well. Kate quickly pointed to the phone and whispered, "Claire."

Jack had warned her that telling his sister they just met that Charlie guy would be unhealthy for everyone, but Kate insisted she had to tell her. Jack shook his head and laughed, going back into the kitchen. Kate was on the phone with Claire for another half hour before she rejoined Jack in the kitchen. "Is she still alive?" Jack teased.

Kate chuckled, "I think so. Did you know Juliet was in Miami? Apparently she went back to see _her sister_ just a few days after Sawyer went," she said with a playful wink.

"Juliet? And Sawyer? I would never have seen that one coming," Jack chuckled.

Kate was silent for a few moments, watching Jack chop vegetables, before she finally spoke, "listen… Jack… I was thinking," she said, waiting for him to look at her with a raised eyebrow, "why don't we take Hurley up on his offer?"

"You want to go to a Drive Shaft concert?" Jack asked.

"Well… I thought Claire would enjoy it…" Kate answered.

"Claire? But she's… she's in Sydney," Jack said.

"Yeah, well… Aaron's old enough to travel with now… I thought we could invite her…" Kate said.

"Aaron's eight…nine weeks old," Jack chuckled, "and what? You're already bored with me?"

Kate slapped his arm playfully, "yes, very bored," she rolled her eyes, "but seriously, she'd love it," she said, "and I think we owe her for leaving her so suddenly."

If Jack thought Claire's original squeal was deafening, he was completely mistaken. After talking with Hurley and making sure his offer still stands, Kate took on the challenge of informing Claire without inducing a cardiac arrest in the young woman.

The concert was not until a couple of weeks, but it was decided that Claire would come earlier to spend some time with Jack and Kate, the couple each secretly missing Aaron as well, and excited to tell Claire about their relationship. They had decided not to tell her over the phone, Kate joked that another bomb like that would really give Claire a heart attack.

…

Jack and Kate stood in the airport arrivals waiting area, Claire's plane had landed but apparently it was full and one of the a few planes that landed at the same time, so it was a long wait. They stood to the side, their hand entwined, talking casually and occasionally sneaking a quick kiss, wrapped in their own world, when they heard "OH MY GOD!"

They jumped back in shock, pulling apart like two teenagers getting caught by their parents. In front of them, Claire, though small in stature, stood with her fists clenched by her side, the small infant carried against her chest in the baby carrier, and she looked more intimidating than had she been seven feet tall.

"I cannot believe it! I am always the last to know, aren't I? Did you even ever intend on telling me? No! Of course not! No one ever tells Claire anything!" She rambled, pushing past them, trying to balance the heavy suitcase she dragged with her, "I am not talking to you two by the way."

She struggled wit her bag and turned to face Jack, who along with Kate stood flabbergasted, "ok, an you help me with this? It's heavy," she said, leaving the suitcase for him to pull, "but I am not talking to either of you."

Jack and Kate shared a quick look and then followed after her towards the exit. Once outside she turned to them, and they feared another fuming rampage. Instead, they were greeted by her warm eyes and wide smile, "Oh my God! I cannot believe it! You two! Finally!" she said and jumped towards Kate, careful not to squish the baby, she wrapped her in a hug. "I am so happy!" she said, pulling back and wiping her eyes swiftly.

The made the drive back to the apartment with Claire firing questions at them. They tried to avoid the more personal questions, but with Claire that was impossible. Jack finally found his break when they arrived and he offered to take the suitcase and the sleeping Aaron to the second bedroom.

"So you two are sharing a bedroom?" Claire asked mischievously once she was alone with Kate.

Kate blushed, "yeah…but we haven't… you know," she said.

"Really? How long have you been together?" Claire asked.

"A couple of weeks," Kate said, trying to get out of the conversation as quickly as possible, "we're just taking it slowly… waiting to hear from the lawyers."

Claire picked up on the sensitivity of the matter, dropping it off quickly before Jack walked back to their room. "You're sure you guys won't mind me and Aaron staying with you?" she asked the couple, "I mean, the baby cries a lot… we can go to a hotel."

"Nonsense," Jack said, "of course we don't mind having you guys."

"Really?" Claire asked.

"Well, I mean, if you want to get a hotel room… at least leave Aaron with us," Jack teased his little sister, walking over to give her a hug.

As they sat for dinner, finally caught up on family matters and updates, Claire finally asked the question she had been itching to ask for hours, "ok, so you really really met Charlie Pace? THE Charlie Pace? Is he as gorgeous in real life? Of course he is! What did he say? What did he do?"

She was almost leaping out of her chair with excitement, and Jack and Kate could not resist the laughs that escaped their throats. "Yes, Claire, we really met him, the real him. And I guess he's good looking… blondes aren't really my type," she said, sneaking a quick glance towards Jack, who was grateful that Kate decided to answer that question and not him, "he did not say much… he was… sleepy and had an interview to go to. Jack's friends with the band manager though," she said.

"Yeah, about that, big brother, another little details you forgot to mention?" Claire asked turning to Jack.

"I honestly did not know Hurley was their manager… I didn't even know what Drive Shaft is until a few days ago," Jack pleaded his case.

"Do you think we'll get to meet the band?" Claire asked, almost jumping off her seat with excitement.

"Well, we do have back stage tickets, so there is a chance," Jack said.

"Oh, about that, I was talking to Shannon and she said she and Boone were going to get tickets to that concert too," Claire said.

Jack turned to Kate, catching her eye for a moment before turning back to Claire, "hey, why don't they use our tickets? Kate and I can watch Aaron and you, Shannon and Boone can go to the concert," he said, taking another quick glance towards Kate to make sure she was ok with it. She gave him a small smile that he took as approval to the plan.

"Are you sure? No… no… that's not fair to you guys… We can't…" Claire said, but was quickly interrupted by Kate. "No, really, personally, I have missed the little guy way too much, and I am pretty sure your brother is not a fan of Drive Shaft," she whispered that last part with a smirk. She had gotten Jack to listen to the band's music a few days ago and he could not hide the cringe that crept over his features, "I know he would rather spend the time with his nephew."

After dinner, Claire went to send Shannon a long, exited email and Jack and Kate took charge of cleaning up after dinner. They were doing the dishes when Jack asked, "you're sure you're ok with this? I mean, if you rally want to go to the concert…"

"I'm really ok with it, Jack, I would much rather spend the evening with you and Aaron than at a concert," she said, turning to place a quick kiss against his cheek, "unless you really want to go…" she teased.

"Me? God no…" he chuckled, "it's just that… I've never had a younger sister before… and back stage tickets… Hurley said the band had drugs and…" Jack rambled anxiously. Kate watched him fluster and smiled. She wiped her hands at the towel by the sink and turned to face him, urging him to face her too. She brought her hands to his face, her fingers softly caressing his stubbled cheeks, "you're just adorable, you know that? You want to go to keep an eye on your little sister…" she said, rising on her tip toes to kiss him softly. "Jack, she is a grown up woman, who has spent most of her adult life without a big brother to look over her shoulder, she'll be fine. Plus, I know you're gonna call your friend Hurley and make him keep an eye on her either way, aren't you?" she asked with a smirk.

Jack smiled guiltily and nodded, "well, then, why don't you just trust your sister, and your friend, and we can plan to enjoy that evening without any worries?" she said.

…

The days that followed passed by quickly. With Claire around there was always something to do and places to go to, and while they did not get the chance to meet anyone from the band, they managed to introduce Claire to Hurley, the two becoming friends quickly, and Jack constantly nagging on Hurley to keep an eye on his little sister.

Kate was glad Claire was there, having her around meant too many distractions that helped keep her mind off her legal issues and the long wait to hear back from the lawyers. Jack was itching to get back to work, and although he never said anything, she could sense it. He had contacted a few of his friends from London, doctors he had met during his travels, seminars and other events and was doing consultations at a few hospitals and clinics.

It was during one of these consultations that Claire tricked Kate into another conversation about her relationship with Jack.

"So you two still haven't slept together?" Claire asked bluntly.

Kate froze for a moment before accepting that this talk had to happen eventually, "no, we haven't," she said.

"But you share a bed? Every night?" Claire pushed even further.

"Yes, we do," Kate said, hoping to keep her answers short and concise.

"And you've never…" Claire asked, still not seeing how those two, who seemed glued together, could still have not taken their relationship to the next level.

"Well, we've come close few times, but no, never," Kate said.

"Is it a religious thing?" Claire asked.

Kate rubbed her forehead, finally giving up trying to maintain short and concise and deciding to open up to Claire, no matter what the consequences would be. "No, it's not that…" Kate started, taking a moment to choose her words carefully, "you know how I'm wanted back home, right?" she said and Claire nodded, "well, right now, the lawyers are working on my case, and maybe things look hopeful, maybe not. We have not heard anything yet. I care about Jack, a lot. I love bing with him. But… I don't want to hurt him. I don't want to hurt myself… If things don't work out like we want them too, I am going to go to jail forever, maybe. And that won't be fair to Jack, to either of us. I cannot take it to the next level, to let either of us to become more vulnerable to the other and just make it more painful than it needs to be."

Kate sat quietly for a moment, "right now, I'm a criminal, I'm a fugitive. Technically, I should not deserve to be happy, should not deserve someone like Jack. Right now, I am giving myself a chance, giving us a chance. But I don't deserve more than that until I am a free woman, until my innocence is proven," Kate could feel the tears spilling down her face and she did not attempt to stop them, "I need to feel worthy, I need to feel like I deserve Jack before… before anything can happen."

Claire moved over to sit next to her, wrapping an arm around her, hugging her tightly and letting her cry into her shoulder. She did not say anything. She especially did not say that Jack had been standing behind Kate, listening to what she had said.

* * *

Oh noes! I am so mean, aren't I? I hope Kate's feelings were clear as to why she feels she cannot take her relationship with Jack to the next level. If not, I hope they will be clearer in the next chapter, because unlike the show, in my fic, Jack and Kate will actually TALK! LOL!

I still do not have a title for next chapter, but all you need to know is that it's gonne be 100% pure Jate!


	21. The Night of the Concert

I honestly cannot apologize enough for the delay in updating this story. Really, I am really really sorry, but I hope you guys have not given up on this story or on me. I think I am quite out of practice, so this felt choppy and well not my best. Hopefully it is not as bad as I feel it is. I'm just getting back into it, so be gentle my wonderful readers. Enjoy!

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**Chapter 21: The Night of the Concert **

Claire looked up at Jack with an apologetic look. She watched his lips curve in a sad smile as he nodded and walked back out of the apartment.

When he walked back in a few hours later, in the afternoon, the apartment was quiet. He called out Kate's name and followed with Claire's as he walked further in, finally reaching the little hallway between the two rooms and hearing the sound of a hair dryer in Claire's room.

He knocked gently before popping his head into the slightly open door.

"Hey," he said once he'd caught her eye in the mirror.

"Hi," she said back, turning to meet him with a sheepish smile on her face. She still felt bad for what had happened earlier, especially since she did not have a chance to talk to Jack yet.

He walked over towards her, stopping by the bed to play with Aaron.

"I'm sorry… about earlier," she said, turning his attention away from the infant, "I shouldn't have stuck my nose where it didn't belong."

He shook his head and smiled, "don't worry about it, it's ok," he said.

"Are you and Kate going to be ok? I don't want to be the one who messes things up for you," she said, her emotions starting to get the best of her.

"We'll be fine, stop worrying yourself about it," Jack comforted her, "speaking of Kate, where is she?" he asked.

"She went for a run… to clear her mind," Claire said, "are you sure you don't want me to hang around tonight? I'll ditch the concert if you need me or if you don't want to look after Aaron…"

Jack laughed, "Oh, God, no! I will never hear the end of it if you miss the concert and miss out on meeting the man of your dreams!" he shook his head, "please go to the concert."

Jack left Claire to finish getting ready and headed towards the shower. It had been a long day and he had a lot going on through his mind. He was looking forward to an evening alone with Kate having decided to find a way to confront her with regards to what he heard, but he was also dreading it, hoping he wouldn't choose the wrong words and push her away.

Kate walked into the apartment after a long run at had helped her clear her mind a bit. Her talk with Claire had not been something she was especially willing to get into and it had drained her. But a few hours later she had come to the realization that she had needed that. She was finally able to put into words all the confusing feelings she had kept inside, all the emotions that had been crippling her from taking the next step with Jack. She did not know what the next step from was but she was glad that her own feelings were starting to become clearer to her, less scary and more tangible, something that she could control and let them control her.

She entered the apartment and was greeted by a bustling Claire, putting the final touches on her make up and clothes, waiting for Shannon and Boone to pick her up. She stopped Claire from trying to apologize for the hundredth time and made her way towards the bathroom for a shower after her long run. She grabbed her things from the bedroom and headed towards the bathroom, not paying attention to where she was going when she almost walked straight into Jack who was exiting the shower himself. She was stopped by his strong arms grabbing onto her shoulders and steadying her.

"Hey," he said, his lips drawing into a smile when he saw the flustered look on her face.

She looked up at him and her smile matched his. No matter how hard a day either of them was having, seeing each other after a long absence always brought a smile to their faces. He pushed a stray curl behind her ear and brought his lips down to hers. She expected it to be a quick peck, but was slightly surprised when he deepened it. It was a slow, sweet kiss, one that left her hanging on to him for balance.

He held onto her when they pulled apart, trying to catch their breath, their foreheads resting against each other.

"What was that for?" she asked with a shy smile.

"I just missed you all day," he said, his fingers trailing over the flushed skin of her cheeks.

She giggled, "but I am all sweaty and sticky."

"You're beautiful," he said, pecking her lips quickly, "but yeah you do need a shower," he teased, earning a playful smack on the arm from her.

Jack was in the living room, trying to feed Aaron when Kate walked out of the shower.

"Do you need help with that?" she asked, watching him struggle slightly.

"No, it's ok… I thought if I took care of the feeding then you could be in charge of changing…" he said, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

Kate laughed, shaking her head and she walked towards him, "no way, buddy, we take turns with the feedings and the changing."

"But, Kate… I am so out of my comfort zone here," he argued.

"No you're not," she said back, "I've seen you change him before, you do it like a pro. And anyway, you are much better with kids than I am."

"What makes you say that?" he said, finally getting Aaron to take the bottle.

"Well, I've seen you with Aaron, and I saw you with the kids in Phuket," she said with a smile, watching his cheeks turn slightly red, "you're a natural."

They decided to go for a walk. Aaron was showing no signs of going to sleep any time soon and was getting restless in the apartment. Jack pushed the stroller with Kate walking next to him when an elderly woman stopped them.

"Oh my, that is just the most adorable baby I have ever seen," she said gushing over Aaron.

"Thank you," Jack and Kate said in unison.

"How old is he?" the woman asked.

"Almost three months," Kate said, thinking back to the day of Aaron's birth.

"Really?" the woman said, eyeing Kate questioningly, "you look amazing for someone who gave birth no to so long ago."

Kate stuttered, tripping over her words trying to explain to the lady that she is not Aaron's mother, but the other woman seemed only interesting in Aaron and paid no attention to Kate's explanation.

Jack on the other hand was watching Kate's flustering, trying hard not to burst out in laughter. He eventually did though, when the woman walked away and earned himself another smack on the arm by Kate, "thank you very much, by the way," she said.

"What? She said your body looks great and I agree," he said with a smirk.

The made it back to the apartment and tucked Aaron in after he'd fell asleep on their way back. They met on the couch in the living room and snuggled together in the middle, Kate grabbing the remote control and flipping through the channels.

"Oh yeah! Die Hard is on!" Kate cried joyfully and fell back into the couch.

Jack looked at her with amusement, "you like Die Hard?" he asked.

"Are you kidding? I love it!" Kate said excitedly.

"You love it?" Jack asked again, the smile on his lips spreading wider.

"What's not to love? It's the perfect movie! Now shush! That's my favorite part," she said.

Jack kissed the top of her head, "you're perfect you know that," he whispered.

Kate was not kidding when she said she loved the movie. She knew almost every line by heart and was completely immersed in it that she failed to notice Jack had not been watching with her. Instead, Jack had been watching her the whole time. It was not until a commercial had come on that she turned to ask him if he wanted another drink that she saw him watching her intensely.

"Hey…" she said quietly, "are you ok?"

He smiled at her, his finger tracing her forearm gently, "I need to tell you something… but please don't get mad," he said anxiously.

She looked at him in confusion, "ok… is it something that will make me mad?" she asked.

"I don't know…" he answered, his gaze growing more intense with every moment, "I hope not… just hear me out, ok?"

She turned for a moment, shutting off the television, and turning back to face him, nodding gently, urging him to say what he needed to say.

"Earlier today, I came home, and you were talking to Claire," he swallowed, seeing the look on her face turn blank, "and I heard what you said. I didn't mean to I wasn't eavesdropping, I just happened to walk in…"

She shook her head, not sure if she should feel angry, embarrassed or betrayed by him listening in on a private conversation. She needed to get out, to get away from him before he did that thing he always did, where he managed to break down whatever wall she could build around herself. She pushed off the couch, trying to get away from the conversation as fast and she could. But he was quicker, knowing her flight instincts would kick in, he grabbed her wrist, not too rough but strong enough to let her know she was not running away from him this time.

"What? What do you want me to say Jack? You obviously heard everything I had to say, so what's the point of me staying here?" She said with her back turned to him, fighting the tears of hurt and anger that were threatening to spill.

"She felt him stand up behind her, heard him take a deep breath before he spoke, "You're right, Kate, I did hear everything. And I am sorry, I know this is something you would not have wanted me to find out like that. But I know now, and it's not something you can keep hiding anymore," his voice was calm and soft, he gently pushed at her shoulders, turning her around to face him, "and I don't need you to say anything, I just need you to listen to me, ok?"

She looked at him, watched as his brown eyes softened with care and understanding and she understood that what he was looking for was not a fight or an argument, and she believed she owed him that much to hear him explain what he needed to. After a moment, she nodded and he breathed a sigh of relief. He sat them back down, taking both her hands in his and he spoke again.

"I have to admit, when I first heard what you told Claire, I didn't understand why you said what you said, what you meant by it, but I took a walk, cleared my head, tried to understand things from your perspective, and… well, I cannot say I understand completely, but I think maybe…"

He let go of one of her hands, raising his hand, running his fingers through his hair, the back of his head, "I know that you may feel that you're a fugitive now, that you don't deserve good things to happen to you until your proven innocent. I understand how scary it might feel to think you are getting attached to someone and caring for someone when any day the phone might ring saying that you're going to jail… that giving in to something you cannot control will be unfair to either of us if things do not end up the way we want them to."

He was quiet for a moment, weighing his next words carefully, he reached over to wipe the tears that had escaped down her cheeks, "I understand the second part Kate, and I feel it to. As much as I believe that you are innocent, sometimes I fear that the lawyers might screw up and not find a way to prove that. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and I feel like I cannot breathe when I think that there might come a day when I wake up and my arms are not wrapped around you," he said, and they both felt a sob escape their throats at that thought.

"But, Kate, I don't understand the first part, I don't… I don't believe it, and it kills me that you believe that… you believe that you do not deserve to be happy, you do not deserve something good. Kate, what happened to you, all the bad luck, the unfair circumstances, they do not define you. On the contrary, they helped form you and turn you into this amazing, wonderful woman, and just because you have had some bad luck along the way, it does not in any way make you bad or damaged…" he smiled at her, watched as a quick sparkle returned to her eyes and found himself drowning into her green orbs again.

"I know that you think you should wait till after the outcome of this situation to decide whether you _deserve_ any of this happiness, I don't know… maybe you think an innocent Kate would deserve things that fugitive Kate doesn't?" he said and she managed to let out a strangled chuckle at the way he put it.

"But you see, Kate, a piece of paper won't define who you are or who you will be. It will always be the same person, and I don't need that piece of paper to decide how I feel about you either," he suddenly stopped midsentence, closing his eyes for a moment before he continued, "because I know the who the woman I fell in love with is, and it's you Kate, fugitive or innocent, I don't care."

Kate's eyes shot wide open at his words, she opened her mouth but the words failed to leave her lips. She breathed deeply and tried again, "you… you fell in love with me?"

Jack nodded, growing anxious, starting to worry that maybe his declaration came too soon, at an inappropriate time. He felt the seconds turning into hours as he watched her, her head dropped, her eyes strained at their entwined hands in her lap, chewing her lip mercilessly. When she looked back up at him, he was slightly relieved to see a smile on her lips.

"What if this doesn't work? I go to jail?" she asked.

"Or we run away together…" he said, trying to hide his anxiety with a light comeback.

"Where will we go?" she asked.

"How about Phuket? We can buy an old house, turn it into a restaurant…" he said.

She shook her head, still smiling, "I can't cook, and I've tasted your cooking, it's horrible," she retorted.

He chuckled, "ok, we'll find something that I am good at… besides cutting people open."

She fell silent again, watching him, his smile fading again to be replaced by the anxiety that has failed to leave him since he said those words.

"Jack?" she said, looking up at him, the smile on her lips growing wider.

"Yes?" he said, silently begging for her to put him out of his misery with any answer. But again she said nothing; instead, she got up and reached a hand out for him. He took her hand and followed as she led him towards their bedroom. The walk to their bedroom seemed longer than he'd ever experienced it to be. Once inside the room, she stopped, shut the door and turned to face him, the lips never escaping her lips. She reached up and caressed his face gently, getting up to her tiptoes and kissing him softly, she pulled back and whispered, "I love you too."

* * *

Ok… That was insanely hard to write you have no idea! I hope it did not disappoint. And since this is not an M-Rated fic, you do not get the details of what happened afterwards (or if it even happened… just kidding, just kidding, no more platonic sleepovers with those two). Seriously though, I hope I managed to deal with this whole situation convincingly.

Only 2 chapter left…

**Chapter 22: Dear Katherine**

A letter addressed to Kate gets delivered and in this letter lies Kate's fate

**Chapter 23: In Phuket**

What? Why? Again?

Please drop me a review and I promise I will never leave you again to wait so long for an update.


	22. Dear Katherine

I hope someone is still reading this and not everyone's given up.

**Chapter 22: Dear Katherine**

"Maybe you can open a clinic?" Kate said, mumbling the words against his bare chest.

"Huh?" he asked lazily, his fingertips tracing patterns on the flushed skin of her arm.

"if we need to runaway to Thailand. I mean, it wouldn't be fair to rob the world of your doctoring skills," she explained.

He let out an amused chuckle, "will you be my nurse?" he asked.

She twisted around, moving around so that she was straddling his lips, her face facing his, "do you want me to dress up in a naughty nurse uniform, Jack? Or is that a antsy you've already lived with one of the nurses back home?" she spoke seductively, pressing her nosy against his, her lips inches away from his.

Jack tried to come back with another smart reply but his body had other plans, allowing only for a groan to escape his lips before they captured hers. He rolled them over, landing above her, her legs still wrapped around his waist when his phone rang.

He let out a disappointed groan, and she let her head fall back onto the pillow. "Just ignore it," she said, urging him back towards her.

"It could be important," he huffed out, "it's 3 in the morning, it has to be important or I'll kill whoever it is."

"Hello?" he spoke into the phone.

"Jack, this is Benjamin Linus," he heard from the other side and let out another groan.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Jack grumbled.

"Yes, I do, but this is urgent," Ben said, not skipping a beat, "a gentleman will be arriving at your apartment in a few minutes with documents of critical nature. I am making sure you are awake to receive them."

"Can't he drop them off in the morning?" Jack asked.

"He is not allowed to hold onto them longer than necessary," Ben said, "Good bye, Jack, we will talk in a few hours."

Jack placed the phone back on the bedside table and turned to Kate, his brow knotted in confusion. "That was Benjamin Linus," he said, "he sent us documents."

Just as Jack finished speaking the words, and before Kate could ask him anything, there was a knock at the door.

They quickly got dressed, Jack rushing to the door to avoid another knock that could wake up the baby.

Jack opened the door to a large man, tall, bearded and a bit brute looking. "Jack Shephard?" the man asked.

"Yes," Jack answered with a questioning look.

"These documents are from Mr. Linus, he said you'd be expecting them," the man said.

"And… who are you?" Jack asked.

"My name is Tom Friendly, I wok for Mr. Linus," he said, handing Jack the brown envelope he was carrying, "Mr. Linus will be calling you in the morning," he finished as Jack took the document, and the Mr. Friendly gave him a light nod and left.

"Was that him? Linus's guy?" Kate asked, finally stepping out of the bedroom.

"Yeah…" Jack said, looking at the package he held, "he dropped off this."

"What is it?" Kate asked, coming to stand next to him as he opened the envelope.

Jack pulled the contacts of the envelope out to find another two, smaller envelopes. The first, a heavier document, had his name printed in black and out on the side of. He switched the second over, a lighter one, somewhat worn out and crinkled, they both read her name, handwritten and faded.

He silently handed her the envelope addressed to her and went on to open his. She recognized that handwriting immediately, one that she had forged hundreds of times to get out of a bad grade or to go on a trip. She swallowed; hard, and found herself searching for the couch, dropping against it immediately as she slowly tore open the closed package.

He watched her as she fell back against the couch, the look on her face, solemn, shocked and sad, immediately gave away who the letter was from. He gave her the space she needed, leaving the room without a word.

She barely noticed him leave the room, but registered the privacy she'd been left with and appreciated that. Somewhere deep within her, she knew that this letter would come someday, but she was never prepared for it.

_Dear Katherine_

_If you are reading this letter then this means that I have passed away… passed away before I had the chance to see you again and say what I need to say to you in person. Truth be told, I do now know if I would have had the courage to say it to your face, so maybe this is better._

_I am so sorry that this has to happen like this… In fact there are so many things that I am sorry about. Who would have thought that a nobody from the middle of nowhere would have so much happen in her life? I was supposed to lead a simple boring life. Marry my high school sweetheart, have two children, join the PTA and make brownies for the bake sales at their school, maybe take a gardening class once they are off to college… My life sure did not turn out like I imagined it to be, huh?_

_Like I said, there are so many mistakes in my life, so many things I am sorry about, but you, Katherine, are eh one thing I would never be sorry about. You are the one thing I did right in my life. I know I never told you that enough, not when you needed to hear it, I never made that clear enough for you, but you have to believe it is the truth. You are the one thing in my life I do not regret, the one thing I am proud of._

_I know my actions have ruined your life, not only the last few years, but most of your life. I pushed away your father, the man who should have been around all your life, and brought into your life the wrong man. I know you hate me for that, I know you never understood why, but maybe someday you will understand, you cannot help who you love, Katherine._

_I know you didn't do it. Kill Wayne. I've known all along. I don't know why I didn't say anything when I should have. But the man I loved, the man I lived every second of my life for, was dead and I needed something, someone, to blame. And you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. And I was just blinded by despair, by anger, and I could not understand that you were my daughter and not just someone I could blame for my loss. I took the easy way out but in that I ruined your life and mine. I lost the one person in my life who truly meant anything and maybe the only one who would care for me unconditionally. _

_I know there is nothing I could do to make it up for you. I don't know when you will read this or where you will be, how long I would have been dead for or how you find out. But I just need you to know that. Withy very last breath all I wanted was not your forgiveness, I know I do not deserve that, but that you can be free again, free and happy and loving the life you deserve. _

_I hope my life could be at least something you could learn from, learn from mistakes, and be a better person than I could have ever been. And that you already are, Katherine. You have always been so much better than I could imagine. You are smart and strong, courageous, confident, and independent. Don't ever forget who you are Katherine. And if you ever find it in you please believe that I am truly and genuinely sorry. _

_And I love you._

She did not know when the tears had started, but at some point while reading it, they had started and now her cheeks were streaked with them. She allowed herself a few minutes, to cry, to mourn her mother, to mourn their lost relationship before she wiped her face with the back of her hand and went to find him. He was in the bedroom, sitting on the bed facing the door, having heard her sobs but choosing to leave her be. His own letter hinted at what was contained in hers and he knew she would want that time alone, that when she was ready she would come to him.

He watched her walk in, her pretty face tear stained and the piece of paper held close to her chest. She walked towards him, slow yet sure steps, coming to stand next to him. He reached up, taking her hand in his, stroking the back of it gently with his thumb. She smiled at him and he returned that smile, the warmth and understanding radiating from it melting her, and triggering the tears she thought she had under control. He saw those tears fighting to fall and tugged slightly at her hand, she followed his lead and got into his lap, allowing his strong arms to wrap around her. She buried her face in his neck, allowing the tears to fall freely again, while her rubbed large, warm circles o her back, whispering calming words to her.

"My mother's dead," she spoke after what seemed like hours.

He nodded, "I know…I'm sorry," he said.

He continued to hold her as she cried, and when he felt her sobs subside he pulled back, urging her to look at him. He kissed her forehead gently, wiping away at the tears and tucking a loose curl behind her ear, "are you ok?" he asked.

She took a moment, biting her lip before she nodded, "I will be… what did your letter say?"

He looked down, at the piece of paper on the bed next to him, "mostly legal things… Ben told me about your mom…"

"What legal stuff?" she asked, straightening up, moving off his lap to the bed next to him.

"Well…" he started, "technically, there is no case against you, not on the murder trail, so _technically_," he repeated the word as a smile crept onto his face, "you're a free woman, Kate."

* * *

YAY! She's free! She's innocent!

Ok, first of all, I apologize for the delay, but you know… life. Ugh!

Second, the letter to Jack said a lot more, Kate will have to face charges of evading the law and a few minor thins she did while on the run, but she is off the hook for the murder charges because her mom is dead and there is no concrete evidence against her aside from the gossiping neighbor's half assed story. But I thought ending the chapter there had a better *BOOM* effect than going into details ;)

And finally, next chapter: In Phuket… the grand finale *sniff*


	23. In Phuket

Oh my… how do I start this final chapter? I think I should (again) start by apologizing for the delay, but if I tell you that life has been kicking my butt lately, that would be an understatement, so I hope you forgive me and hang in there for this last chapter.

Next, I think it is only appropriate that I thank you, each and everyone, whoever took the time to tread this story and whoever took the time to review. Your words and feedback helped me through all of this and I could not have done it without your encouragement and excitement. So, from the deepest depths of my heart, I thank you, each and everyone! I love you all!

Finally, I would like to tell you that hopefully after this, I am moving to "Not With Anyone", the fic I had started some time ago. It won't be as long as this, but I am very very excited about so I hope you will join me in that one too.

And now, on with the story!

* * *

**Chapter 23: In Phuket…**

_**Two and a half years later…**_

_**Miami, Florida, USA**_

"In Phuket? Really?" Sawyer huffed, dropping onto the couch, "that son of a bitch is seriously thinking of dragging me back to that place again?"

"Oh, shut up, I think it's romantic," Juliet said, swatting him playfully on his arm.

"Romantic? Oh, blondie, you won't be thinking romantic when you're sun burnt and fighting off the bugs, I'll tell you that," Sawyer smirked.

"Oh what would you know? You do not have a single romantic bone in your body!" Juliet argued.

"Oh, come on! I am romantic! Maybe not as cheesy as Doc is, but I can sweep you off your feet," Sawyer said.

Juliet rolled her eyes and laughed, "oh really, now? Tell me, James, what are your plans for today?"

Sawyer's faces crunched in annoyance, "babysit your nephew," he grumbled.

"And why is that?" Juliet said.

"Because I forgot our date last night, and my punishment is watching the little squirt while you and your sister spend a day at the spa," Sawyer explained dejectedly.

"Like I said… not a single romantic bone…" Juliet laughed.

Sawyer looked at her, a strange sense of fear rising onto his face, "does that mean you want to get married in Sydney on the anniversary of our first meeting?"

Juliet laughed, her head dropping back onto the couch, "no, I just want you to remember our dates," she said calmly, kissing a relieved Sawyer's cheek.

_**Los Angeles, California, USA**_

"Come on, Shan! You cannot seriously need all that makeup!" Boone complained throwing his sister's makeup case out of his suitcase.

"Boone! Stop!" Shannon cried, pushing out of the way to grab her things, "you said I could borrow space in your bag. Mine just won't fit!"

"Well, you said, you need space for some lipstick and mascara, not an entire beauty shop!" he argued.

"Ugh! What do you know! Plus, all you need is a tux, why is your bag so full anyway?" Shannon said, going through the contents of his suitcase.

"Hey! Have you heard of a thing called privacy?" Boone said, pulling her away from his bag.

"Seriously, Boone, why do you need the company portfolio? You know they're getting married, so the odds are, they don't need a wedding planner," Shannon said rolling her eyes.

"If you must know," Boone said, "they're not for them. Someone else asked me to bring those with me."

"Who? Juliet?" Shannon asked in a shocked tone.

"Nope. Try again," Boone smirked arrogantly.

Shannon's eyes popped with excitement, "NO?"

Boone's smile widened as he nodded. "Oh My God!" Shannon shrieked running to the phone.

_**Sydney, Australia**_

"Aaron, Aaron! Slowly!" Claire called after the young boy running through the halls.

"I can't mommy, I need to pack so many things. I can't forget anything," he said, running past her between his room and the living room.

Claire's fear rose upon hearing those words from her son. Slowly she made her way to his room to understand what exactly he was planning on packing.

Her jaw dropped at the site of her son's bedroom. "You ok, love?" her fiancé asked walking up behind her.

"I think my son wants to pack the entire city with him to Phuket," Claire said looking at the mess in the room.

Charlie peeked from over her shoulder to witness what she was about to collapse from.

"Hey, buddy, what are you doing here?" Charlie asked the child with a laugh.

"I need to show uncle Jack all my new toys!" Aaron squealed excitedly, "there's also the X-Box and the Playstation I need to get from the tv room but you said not to touch electricity alone. Can you help me Charlie?"

Claire collected herself, calming enough to talk to her son rationally. "Aaron, honey, we cannot take all of your toys with us. I am pretty sure the plane would crash," she said causing Charlie to giggle and watching sadly as her son's lower lip started to tremble, "but you know what? You can pick two toys to show him, and I have a secret to tell you, do you want to hear it?"

Aaron nodded, fighting away the tears, "well, Jack has told me, that after the weeding in Thailand, uncle Jack and aunt Kate are going to come here! They're going to spend two weeks in Sydney! So you don't need to take them with you, you can show him everything when he comes here! What do you think?"

Aaron took a moment to think that over, surveying the array of toys he had laid out, "ok, I guess." He finally said with a shrug.

"You okay?" Charlie asked after they left the young boy to clean up the mess he had made.

Claire nodded, "yes… but I've been thinking… I know you are excited about us getting married and having more children… but can we wait at least till this one is eighteen?"

Charlie laughed, wrapping her in hug and placing a gently kiss to her forehead, "whatever you want, babe."

"I just want to make it to my big brother's wedding without my son crashing the plane, to be honest," Claire giggled.

_**Phuket, Thailand**_

Jack rolled over to his side, the sound of running water in the bathroom finally waking him up from the deep sleep he had fell into after a long night. He could see the thin spread of light escaping from under the door and smiled to himself thinking of the women behind it. They'd been in Thailand three days and were yet to leave their hotel room. He saw the shadow moving around in the bathroom as she came closer to the door and he closed his eyes again, a mischievous grin ghosting his lips.

She walked out of the bathroom with a loose towel hanging around her body, shaking her head when she saw he was still asleep. With her back to him, she let the towel fall freely to he ground exposing her freshly showered back to him. As though on cue, he slowly reopened his eyes, trying his best not to make any sudden movements or sounds that would prevent him from the sight in front of him. He watched as her slender body made its way across their room, gathering the clothes scattered al around from their adventures the night before. He watched her wet hair as it rested over her shoulder, exposing her long neck, sending a jolt through his body. The show was quickly coming to an end though, much to his dismay, as she promptly found her bra and matching panties and put them on.

He could not hold back the groan that escaped his lips when she bent down to pick up her t-shirt and she jumped back, slightly startled.

"Oh, you're good, Shephard," she said, walking towards him, purposely swaying her hips just a little.

"Actually, you're the one who's pretty good," he said with a sly grin, pushing up from his reclining position.

"How long have you been watching me?" she said.

"Long enough," he said with a wink, sitting up and throwing his legs off to the side of the body, catching her surprised between them.

She gave a short yelp and tried to escape him, but he was too quick, immediately catching her waist between his hands and holding her still.

"Jaaaack," she cried, trying to swat his hands away, "I'm trying to get dressed."

"Yeah… I noticed," he said, his tone dropping with a sense of seriousness, "I don't get why you constantly try to put clothes on when I will just take it off you in a few minutes."

"Well, you know, normal people put clothes on. Normal people leave the hotel room when they are on vacation. I'm just trying to be normal here, Jack" she laughed.

"hmmm," he mumbled, getting distracted by the soft skin of her stomach, pulling her closer towards him, "who said I want to be normal. Normal is over-rated."

She had a comeback ready, but all thought was lost when he had finally pulled close enough and his lips started tracing the skin just above her underwear and his hands travelled dangerously low. She finally gave in, closing her eyes, accepting the blissful assault he had launched on her senses. He kissed the warm skin, nibbling gently before he pulled back, a little too soon for her liking. When she opened her eyes, ready to complain and the torture, she felt his right hand leave its place on her back and land on her stomach, as his eyes, soft and warm, was watching intently the path that his fingers traveled.

She watched him silently, his gaze growing sharper, until he finally spoke, whispering softly against her stomach, "good morning, baby, sorry we kept you up so late last night," he smiled, as did she, her hand leaving his shoulder and making its way to the back of his neck.

She felt his fingers trace the contours of where she knew their child was growing. She was only a few weeks pregnant, having found out just a couple of days before they travelled. She wasn't showing yet but she was sure he knew where her womb was. He had done this once before, talk to the baby, when they got on the plane and he assured it they will be all right. She noticed that his touch was changing from day to day and it helped her start noticing the change in her own body. His arm around her body as they slept had become more protective, never letting go throughout the night.

"I can't wait for you to get so big," he laughed against her stomach, still talking to the child. She laughed slightly before playfully slapping him on the shoulder, "you mean you can't wait for me to get all fat?" she giggled.

"No," he defended himself, "you won't get fat, you'll be beautiful. A beautiful woman, carrying a beautiful big baby," he said.

"Well, maybe when he gets that big, you'd like to carry him for a while," she teased.

He laughed slightly before his features knotted with concern. He gently pulled her down, urging her onto his lap. "Are you ok?" he asked, the doctor tone creeping into his voice.

She smiled appreciatively, knowing that with all the teasing that could happen between them, her health and his concern for her well being will always come first.

"I'm fine," she said sweetly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. She noticed him nod slightly, still not convinced. She smiled, kissing his lips tenderly.

"Are you sure? You're not tired? Nauseated? We can take it easy today if…" he said, looking at her, pushing a stray curl behind her ear.

"Jack, I'm fine," she said confidently, "we're… fine," she added, bringing touching her stomach and smiling. His features finally relaxed at that, "I can't believe there's a child in there, our child," he said proudly, placing his hand over hers.

"I can't believe we're getting married tomorrow," she said, the smile on her lips stretching wide. He looked up at her, his smile matching hers.

"I know," he said, "just three years ago I was sitting in a bar a few streets away from here, close to drinking myself to death, and now I'm marrying the perfect woman and if that wasn't enough, she's pregnant with my child… I love you, Kate."

"I love _you_," she whispered back, fighting against the tears, closing her eyes as her fiancé's lips captured hers in hot, passionate kiss.

_**The End**_

* * *

That was so much harder than I thought! No one tells you how hard it is to write a final chapter. I don't think I was ready to say good-bye LOL! I hope you guys enjoyed it, that it was not a disappointing ending. It's pure fluff, I know, not usually how I roll but I'll get another chance to make you all cry. Ha!

Once again I want to thank you all for sticking around, for your feedback and support. You've all been the most amazing readers anyone can ask for, and I hope to see you in Not With Anyone!

Love you all! *muah*


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